Luthien's Firefly Hollow Thread

Guess chickens draw my attention more than cows do.

 

HELLO HELLO HELLO guys! It's been a while, yeah? lol I've actually been away from my computer a lot lately so I haven't been able to finish the season or post an update on my normal schedule, sorry for the long absence! Things are alive and well at the chicken ranch, and I can finally catch up with the Spring update. You'll have to do without a banner this time as it appears I forgot to make one.

Anyway....
I marched right over on the 1st day of Spring (after saying hello to Kent, who showed up on Mara's doorstep bright and early to introduce himself) and turned in the last item needed to restore the community center. The villagers were all very pleased and we had a wonderful celebration. Mara brought home the Stardew Hero trophy and proudly displays it in her bedroom.


This of course unlocked the Wizard's quest, and I finished that right away so I could build a Junimo hut in the garden. Mara now has three adorable little helpers.



Been a busy season, especially for Robin. lol I had her upgrade all four of my coops so that they can all house 12 chickens, and I've been working on building up my hen population over the course of the season. The majority of this has been via incubating eggs but I've also been purchasing batches of chicks from Marnie in hopes of getting some of Shane's blue hens, and so far I've managed to get three. Basically I buy as many as I can fit, wait until they're adults, and sell off any that aren't blue. It will be a bit of a slow process but I think eventually I'll get them all.


I upgraded my house and FINALLY got that much-awaited furniture catalog! I decorated the house in pinks, inspired by the pink blossoms on all the cherry trees this time of year, which are Mara's absolute favorite. It was quite fun being able to try out ideas and simply get rid of what I didn't like and redo it until I did, SO much easier than how it has been.


I fixed the shed up as well. Originally I had wanted to turn it into some kind of fancy tea parlor but a lot of the furniture simply isn't symmetrical, and things weren't looking right. So I went with a potted plant shed instead, sort of another greenhouse I suppose but less focused on growing crops and more about Mara's houseplants. There's a little sitting area too for when she wants to relax out there.


While I'm showing you guys the inside of buildings, here's the greenhouse and artisan shed as well. Nothing too different for the artisan stuff, just lots of mayo machines and a few kegs and preserves jars. On this save, I've decided to grow multiple-harvest crops, ancient fruit, and two of each fruit tree inside the greenhouse, just for something different.




I also added a horse to the farm. Erised is Mara's new dapple-grey beauty. I've had a little bit of trouble remembering to take him along when I make the rounds, since I've gotten so used to going on foot everywhere. He has a lovely pasture all to himself though and I'm sure doesn't mind being left at home to guard the chickens.


In other news, Mara finally asked Shane out, and they went on their first real date not too long after. Shane wanted Mara to go with him to a gridball game, and though she's not much of a sports fan herself, she was happy to tag along. In a moment of excitement, Shane stole a smooch, Mara stole it back, and they got caught on the stadium's Kiss Cam! Later on, they danced together at the Flower Dance and Mara had a blast.



I also worked on more friendships, and throughout the course of the season had several cut scenes. Rather than spam them as separate photos I've compiled them all into a collage. I will likely do this from here on out, as it makes it much easier to share the fun with you guys without having to upload so many pictures. Couple of other notable funny things to include: Mara found a daffodil inside the ice cream stand, directly behind the counter like it was trying to sell frozen treats. I couldn't resist a picture of that. Also, I've started a um...project, up by the train station. hehe I may be hatching slimes up there.... Okay, I'm totally hatching slimes up there. Don't tell Marlon!



That just leaves the stats for the end of the season, so here's those:


Once again, sorry for the lapse in updates, the holidays are making things kind of crazy so I may have to deviate from my regular posting schedule a bit until the new year rolls in. Thanks so much for showing interest in my little farm guys!

 

Omg thats incredible! your farm looks astonishing! even more so than in the past if I say so myself! and aww junibobos are helping you now ^^ thats adorable! That steed of yours looks quite content with its new home, too!

 

Junibobos. lol That's cute.

 

Good afternoon everyone!
Though I am heading into the coldest part of the year here in Oklahoma, I've got a warm and sunny update for you from the chicken ranch. I've been away from my desk quite a lot over the last couple weeks, so this season got a bit spread out and I can only hope I remember everything. I'm actually really looking forward to the holidays being over so I can return to my normal routines, including my playing schedule.

Anyway, lets talk Summer year 2 shall we?

A few changes to the farm this season - I've changed up the arrangement at the bottom of the farm a bit to accommodate a second shed. I decided since I have two of each fruit tree inside the greenhouse, it wouldn't be too much of a loss to just axe the ones outside in order to make room. So now the new shed sits on one side and the other has the flower and wild produce gardens and the beehives. Symmetry has been sacrificed for function, ah well.


I wanted to fit more kegs and preserves jars into the big artisan building so I've moved the mayonnaise machines into their own shed. Had some fun decorating it as well, and finally found a good place for all those chicken statues I keep finding on the farm. lol I'm thinking I may swap out the wallpaper in here with the seasons just like I do with the house.


Speaking of the house, here's what it looked like for the summer. I mainly changed all the pinks to greens. No other major changes yet, the next house upgrade won't happen until spring year 3.


I've continued my little slime breeding project up at the railroad. And by continued I mean I've basically let them spawn like crazy and take over the whole place. lol I couldn't even tell you how many there are now, probably well over 150, maybe more. You can't exactly count them cuz they're constantly moving around. I've tried to introduce a purple line into the mix but they don't seem to breed as quickly as the greens and blues and so far there's only three purples.


Mara's first gem berry finally matured, so I took that over to the Secret Woods and fed the statue, giving Mara her fourth Stardrop.


I've made more progress with the villagers and have somewhere around half of them at full hearts now. Naturally, that means lots of cut scenes.


I got my final blue chicken from Marnie just a few days before the end of Summer, so my coops are all complete now. I currently own 48 chickens, two cows, and a sheep (who I'm just keeping around long enough to obtain the 4 cloth I need for the windmill). I had a pig over the summer in order to get a couple bottles of truffle oil to complete the shipping collection and fill Lewis's quest, but I've sold him now.


My current earnings show I'm doing pretty darn good for myself. I've basically doubled the amount of gold in my savings since the end of Spring, and my total profit for the whole season was 886, 233 gold. I'm not really doing anything crazy to earn money, just selling a lot of mayo, wine and jelly. I do make a fair amount from mining as well, since that's typically what I use to kill time.


My goals for Fall are really just to add more kegs to my brewery and work on friendship levels with the villagers who have a birthday this season. I should be able to get through the season before we leave for Christmas weekend, so hopefully I'll have the next update around this time next week. As always, thanks for reading/looking!

 

Wow thats some pretty strong progress! so you will not keep the sheep because of the chicken farm? or just not a fan ?

 

Both, honestly. lol I mainly want the focus to be on chickens, the only reason I'm keeping a couple of cows is for the milk because I need it for some recipes. My experience with sheep in my other games hasn't been very good, it seems like they don't produce wool nearly often enough to justify keeping them. Though I suspect its some of those backwards mechanics that some others on this forum discovered, there's some very weird coding going on with the animals.

 

Oh wow I didnt know that! and yeah I have 2 sheeps and... I could as well -not- have them lol, their impact and presence is just forgetable... poor sheeps, not fluffy enouht for this world

 

It's heeeeeere..... ;3

Whew! Managed to get through the whole season before being whisked off for Christmas weekend. Here's how things went down in Fall of Year 2 on the chicken ranch...

As you've probably already noticed, Mara's got a new look! I installed a new hair mod and while she was picking out the perfect style, Mara decided to return to her bright red roots and wear those luscious cherry red locks with pride. She now more closely resembles the character in my avatar, which is who she's based on. n_~ I did this right at the end of Fall though so some of my pictures will still have her in pink pigtails.

Alright, onward to the farm!

I added a silo. That's pretty much all I've done. lol I haven't even actually used it yet, I didn't grow enough beats or wheat to really make use of it.

My house is...eh, not my best look I'm afraid.

The problem is that I like to try and decorate by season, but there's just not much for me to work with wallpaper-wise for Fall. I don't like how the one leaf print looks with the purple furniture, so I always use the mushrooms. This has actually prompted me to try my hand at a bit of modding, and I'm currently working on a complete overhaul of the wallpapers and maybe the flooring, if I get enough ideas for it. I've already made over a dozen new designs, all beautiful flowery nature-friendly stuff that I can't wait to try out and share with everyone. I've got a couple of really great Autumn themed wallpapers that are gonna look amazing in my house next year.

Up at the railroad, the Slime Saga continues. I'll let the picture do the talking...


I started a modest little mead brewing operation in the Secret Woods. I mainly wanted to have something special going on in there so there'd be more incentive to visit every day, since I really don't *need* to chop hardwood anymore. The way it's set up now I have a new bottle of mead pretty much every day, and enough hives to keep the production line going indefinitely.


Once I had enough beets, I decided to go ahead and complete Qi's quest and get Mara her club card. Once I had access to the casino, I blew a million to buy myself a gold statue.


I also returned to the Stardew Valley Fair with my assortment of top-notch items so I could win the grange display contest again. I pretty much just keep these items in a chest specifically for this event. lol


I worked on friendship levels with all villagers who had a birthday in Fall, and finished off some of the Summer ones that were still incomplete. I'm actually all caught up now, aside from the winter birthdays. By spring of year 3, every single one of them is gonna love me.


And finally, the money stats for the end of season:

I made a lot, but I also spent a lot. lol

And that's it for this season. I'm headed out of town for the weekend for Christmas stuff but I'll be back at it on Tuesday morning, ready to start another long, cold winter. I hope everyone reading this has an awesome holiday and spends it in good company!

 

Good lords! you have quite your own little village going on in that forest! Its gorgeous! love the autumnal look of the forest and colours of your buildings ^^

Do you think the Slimes will gain free will and migrate beyond the railroad? I am sure they would like Pelican town!

 

It's a possibility! They already got into the river, they may start swimming upstream. lol

 

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!
It's time for:


What can I say, it has been a looooong winter. lol When there's no crops to plant and harvest (aside from the wild forage I fill the gardens with) and the valley sleeps under a blanket of snow, the days can be quite tricky to fill. Mara has spent the majority of winter in the mines, filling out her gem collection and smelting ore into bars for some extra cash. She kept a steady production of mayo, ancient fruit wine, and crystal fruit and blackberry preserves going throughout the season, so between those and her mining efforts, she managed to pull in a fair amount of money.

As is custom, the farmhouse has been decked out in holiday colors. Still doing the red/green theme I've done the past few winters (here and on my old save) because without a winterstar tree in my furniture pack, I have to make up for it elsewhere. So lots of garlands, potted evergreens, and holly. Next winter I may try a different approach, just to see if I like it. Also, as you can see, Mara was extremely fortunate to find three more prismatic shards, and she decided to display those, along with the one she already had, in a prominent place in her home.


The farm still looks pretty much how it did at the end of Fall, but I did make some slight changes to the horse pasture. I moved the well over a bit and changed the positioning of the gate to a spot that's just visually nicer and makes more sense. Not that Erised would really try to escape, but it's all fenced in now to keep him safe.


Mara's major achievement of this season: Completing Master Angler and receiving her fifth Stardrop. That Lava Eel is a pain in the you-know-what but Mara decided one day she'd just have to load up on fishing skill-boosting food, trap bobbers, and lots of patience and head down there to catch him, even if it took a hundred casts. She did come out with a mountain of trash, but she caught him, and now she never has to go down there again. The final fish on the list was none other than the legendary Glacierfish, but he was relatively easy to catch despite being distracted by Slimes.


But Luthien, you say, why were there Slimes down at the river? Well dear reader, I'm glad you asked. Remember in the last update when I mentioned I had started breeding some purple and red slimes in the southern portion of Cindersap? Needless to say that has been an outstanding success, so much so that they've managed to spread into the river as well, and are starting to appear in other, unreachable areas of the map. See for yourself:

Those slimes in the water? I didn't put them there. Somehow, when some slimes got busy on the riverbank, their babies just fell into the water and proceeded to carry on with populating the area, and I can't reach them to thin the numbers so they just keep reproducing. The ones that do manage to climb out on the opposite shore meet a swift end when Mara finds them, as I don't want them spreading into the upper part of the woods.

In other Slime-related news, my Railroad colony is huge. I have been thinning them out to try and get more of the green ones, as I do like their various shades of green.


I've also started two more colonies, these focusing on specific colors. I'm crossing purple and blue slimes down at the tidepools to try and get this pretty greyish-indigo color I've seen pop up a few times in my Railroad colony, and I'm breeding for pink slimes inside the community center by crossing red and purple, which makes fuschia, which can then be bred back to red a few times to produce pink.....slime genetics, it's a thing. lol See, this is what you do when you run out of farm to decorate.


But enough about those little boogers for now. Mara worked all season on fully befriending the rest of the villagers. As of now, Krobus is the only one who's not at full hearts, but I think my game is bugged or something because I can't talk to him, I can only gift him, and that's made the process take a bit longer. A few more purple-star void eggs and I'll have him won over. Mara received a lovely sculpture from Leah and caught the tail end of an aerobics class that Dr. Harvey attended, but she promised she wouldn't tell anyone she saw him there. Silly Harvey...half the women in town are already at the class, who would be left to tell anyway?


The end of winter brings us to the Feast of the Winter Star, and this year Mara was assigned to be Jodi's Secret Santa. She has no shortage of diamonds so she gave one to Jodi for this year's gift.

At the festival, Mara found out Alex had been her Secret Santa, and he gifted her with a beautiful ruby. In my mind, gemstones are most fitting when presented as jewelry, so I decided that the gift was actually a necklace with a ruby heart pendent, something a bit more special.


Going into year 3, Mara has some big plans of the romantic variety. But first, she has a special visit coming...there's something strange going on with that old shrine in the back corner of the farm.


Looking over her earnings for the season, and for the year, leads Mara into year 3 with plenty of optimism...and a good chunk of financial security too.


A house upgrade is on the to-do list, after all, gotta make some room for Shane since he just might be moving in soon. She's got a chest fully stocked with strawberries, rhubarb, cherries and apricots that will be turned into wine and preserves during Spring, and the animals are excited to get back outside after spending all winter cooped up indoors. And of course, the Junimo will awaken from their winter nap and be ready to help with the garden again, which is probably the best part of all.

 

*taps the mic* Is this thing on?

Got another update for you guys - not sure if anyone's still reading but nonetheless I have crafted an update for Spring Year 3 on Miss Mara's Chicken Ranch, so here goes!


A lot of important things happened this season - we started things off with a visit from beyond the grave, when dear ol' Grandpa returned to give his evaluation. There was never really any doubt, but Mara inspired him to light all 4 candles on the shrine.


The farm is looking as magnificent as ever - all the new growth and return of life is always refreshing after a stark, white winter.


The first order of business was getting the house upgraded, and later in the season I was able to decorate with a custom set of wallpapers and flooring I made. I'm still new to pixel art and modding the game in general but I think for a first attempt it's not too bad. There are some I'd change and some that I really love...the ones I really love are what ended up being used in my house.

If you'd like to check out the rest of what I made, you can visit this thread here: http://community.playstarbound.com/threads/new-wallpaper-and-flooring-my-first-mod.128894/


As you can see, there's an extra room added onto that house, which of course belongs to Shane.
On Spring 12, he and Mara were married and Mara wasted no time getting him settled in and feeling right at home.


He seems to be enjoying his new life so far, though he was a bit less than thrilled when Mara tried to have a pet slime in the house.


He moved a small chicken hutch for his special hen Charlie into the side yard, and on Saturdays he goes out and spends time with her. It's quite adorable really.


It didn't take long for Mara to get him to 13 hearts, and for this she received her 6th Stardrop.



In other news, the slime population in Cindersap is bursting at the seams. The river is running nearly purple and Mara has to patrol the north bank every morning to kill off any loose slimes. Meanwhile, she did a bit of selective swordsmanship and killed off all the purples that were on land, leaving only red and pink slimes to breed. They tried to help her when she came through to pick Salmonberries, but without arms they weren't much use.



Mara finished filling the last few hearts with Krobus, bringing all the villagers to full friendship levels with her. She got a few cutscenes and also some cute photos with Shane as she tagged along on his walks around town. He cheered her on at the egg festival and danced with her at the flower dance. I suspect that now that everyone is fully friended there may be less socializing and as a result, fewer photos, but I'll see what I get as the seasons progress.


And finally, the end-of-the-season stats:


If you guys are still enjoying these updates let me know - I don't want to bore anyone. I enjoy sharing and hopefully giving you some ideas for your own farms but I know after the first couple years when the farm is all built it can get sort of repetitive. If there's anything that you want to see or if you like these updates as they are now, let me know. As always, thanks for reading.

 

I don't check this thread on a regular basis but if you want to share a beautiful farm tgere will always be people on this forum who are interested.
By the way did you mod your dog or cat to look like a Junimo? It seems that way on the large screenshot.

 

Yes I did. That mod is here if you want to check it out, you can even choose the color you like and it works for the dog and the cat (won't change the sounds though): http://community.playstarbound.com/threads/pet-junimo.128516/

 

I wanted to stop by and say your farm is lovely. You've put a lot of work and effort into it and should be proud. A lot of people read or look and refrain from commenting, myself included. Today I thought I'd change that.

 

OMG I have been away... so much to read

Your progress is so astounding! specially on your pixel art side! I am quite surprised and at the same time... I shouldnt... you seem to be such a taleted artist! certainly you ll make great pixel work eventually! also Shane looks a bit scruffy... I think the lad needs a visit to the Barber <.<

Your place looks so nice and cozy ^^ even the forest! that kind of green and earth colours are just so wonderful to look at! not so lively as vanilla but warm and comfortable to the eyes

*realizes there is no barber in Stardew valley*
OMG a mod idea!

 

Aww but I like him scruffy. lol Nice to see you back, I feel like all my old buddies on here sorta disappeared. ;_;

Its funny, now when I look at the Vanilla color scheme in the game (such as on Festival days, where it reverts) it just seems ridiculously bright, like someone turned the saturation WAY up. You get used to seeing it like that but then when you haven't for a while, its a bit shocking.

I'm currently fiddling around with a furniture set - nothing I'm really making on my own but I'm figuring out how to take stuff other people made and modify it to my liking. My plan is to have my own custom furniture set for personal use that has everything I need.

 

*hugs* ow, it hurts me to hear that... I was gone building a computer >w< it took a few hiccups and 12 stressful hours lol, then I was gone! I will go on a limb here and bet the others are just out in the holidays! ^^

Also Happy New Year!! I hope things will be great for you in 2017!!

 

No worries man, I know the holidays kinda threw everything out of order for a while - my posts were late too. lol Happy to finally be back on schedule now, not just with Stardew stuff but with life in general.