A look at some of your starting options for planting on Spring 1

Sigrah

Farmer
Day 1: Get to at least 760 to 1,010 gold, buy 14 to 19 potato seeds and 1 bean, then chop down trees to get to 50 to 100 wood, and build 1 chest to start storing things on the farm. If I'm lucky and find an artifact on my first day, that is an easy 250 gold thanks to the museum quest. If not, I'll dump any forage I can find. I don't worry if I'll have them for the CC early on, I can usually find 1 of each by day 4 or 5. For day 1 planting, I'll go with 14 to 19 potatoes, 1 bean, 15 parsnip, and 5 wild seeds in the hopes 1 is at least a cauliflower.

Day 2: If necessary, cut down trees to reach 50+ wood. Then I dump all my tools except for the scythe in the 1st chest, make a 2nd chest, and will check for spring onions. After that, I run to Willy's to get fishing going. Once I get the starter fishing rod, I run as fast as possible to the Mountain Lake, place my 2nd chest on a safe part of the lake (usually just south of where Sebastian paths when he goes out for smokes at night), and start fishing. Why the lake? Because they offer some of the highest selling fish in Spring on non-rainy days, and the experience is better too. Plus, you have a decent shot of perfectly catching carp, which can add up if you're an expert with the fishing rod. Having my chest there also allows me to dump trash, artifacts, and different quality fish so I don't have to throw any back. My main goal for Day 2 is to get as close to Fishing Level 2 as possible so I can buy the Fiberglass Rod and use bait. As for watering crops, I save that till 9pm give or take so I can maximize my chances of catching large mouth bass (most valuable non-rainy day fish at a base price of 100 gold per).

Day 3: Typically, I'll start the day getting another 50 wood for a 3rd chest, then head to the river in Cindersap Forest. Once there, I'll drop off my chest next to the river, then go to Willy's for the Fiberglass Rod if I have 2,000 gold (1,800 for the rod, 200 for 40 bait), or fish until I have enough fish to sell to Willy to get to 2,000. After that, it's back to the river to fish whatever I can catch. My main goal is catfish, even though I typically only have 35% success rate at such a low level. But they sell at a base price 200 gold per, and they are worth a nice chunk of experience to boot, especially if you can haul in a treasure chest on any of them. Unless I have very bad luck, I can typically expect to reach at least level 4 fishing by days end, which makes getting catfish a bit easier by the end of the day since the range increases when you level even before you officially level up after going to bed at the end of that day. Keep in mind, though, that this tactic is for those who are really good at fishing, and you have to have patience as well. If you're still trying to get the hang of it or just aren't very good at it, head to the mountain lake instead and don't worry about getting a 3rd chest. Regardless, if you catch any Shad, store at least 1 for the CC. If you prefer, you can also save one of each CC fish and dump the rest, but that's entirely up to you and your goals.

Day 4: If I had a successful day 3 of fishing (at least 2,000 gold worth), I'll start off by looking for spring onions, then go buy the first backpack upgrade (inventory space is KING). Afterwards, it's off for more fishing. If it's raining again, it's back to the river. If it's not raining, back to the mountain lake. Yes, I'm INSANE when it comes to fishing. My whole goal is getting enough cash to start upgrading my watering can and axe by the start of Day 7 or 8, while aiming for 10,000+ gold by the time the egg festival rolls around so I can get at least 100 strawberry seeds. As for the pick and hoe, I'm not too worried about them early on. But if I can get a steel watering can and steel axe by the end of spring, I'm good.

Day 5: Unless it's raining, it's off to the mines for whatever copper I can find, and get as far down as possible, preferably to at least level 10 or 15. Typically, since I have the first backpack upgrade by now, I'll pick up my lake chest on the way. If I manage to get any amethyst, I'll usually leave the mine by 6:00pm so I can give Abigail one while she's at the bar. If I also have any Topaz, Emily will get one of those. Also, by now, the parsnips will be ready to harvest, but I save it for the end of the day because I won't plant anything until Day 6 when I can finally build a scarecrow. When I do harvest them, I'll save any silver or gold quality parsnips I get, and the rest I just dump in the shipping box. The thing about silver and gold quality parsnips is that most villagers like vegetables, and they make cheap gifts for villagers you don't have loved gifts for yet (like Alex, Elliot, etc.). Just make sure you save 5 gold quality parsnips for the CC, and one for Pam's birthday later on in spring. Oh, and almost forgot, if I have the cash, I'll head to the traveling cart and get at least the rare seed. If I see a Red Cabbage (or seed), a Truffle, or a rabbit's foot, I'll do my best to get those as well, especially the red cabbage / seed since you can't otherwise get it until Summer Year 2. Keep this in mind every time you visit the traveling cart btw. It's possible to get a truffle and a rabbit's foot near the end of Fall, but that red cabbage / seed is a top priority if you wanna finish the CC before Summer Year 2.

Day 6 and 7: This is when I start to change things up. If I have a lucky day, I'll head to the mines for more copper and try to reach level 20 since getting through the spiral of level 19 can be extremely lengthy. If my luck is neutral or bad, I'll usually do fishing and make an effort to talk to villagers whenever possible. I also aim to start the CC over the next few days as well, and go for spring seeds around this time to start planting. And I'll work towards upgrading my watering can to copper. On Day 7, I'll give Mayor Lewis the best quality parsnip or potato I harvest for his birthday. Outside of that, it just depends on what my goals are at that point.

A few random tips:

Random tip #1: If you see a coconut or pink cake for sale before or on the day of Spring 14 at the traveling cart or saloon, you might want to buy it and hand it to Haley on her birthday (Spring 14) if you want to romance her. If you talk to her most days, give her liked gifts during the first 2 weeks (especially anything of silver or gold quality like Daffodils), and give her a loved gift (the coconut) on her birthday, you have a decent shot of having 4 hearts with her by the time the flower dance comes around (and dancing with her gives you a full heart with her like it does with the other marriage candidates. I explain doing this for other villagers next as well, but Haley gets her own tip because she's the first marriage candidate to have their birthday, and it comes really quickly.

Random tip #2: If you find any loved gifts for villagers at the traveling cart or as the dish of the day in the saloon that you know you won't get or be able to make right away, and you can afford them, consider buying them for other villager birthdays later down the road. Typically, I do this for spring and summer birthdays where a villager loves gifts that are hard to come by early on. For example, I will try to buy a Complete Breakfast or Salmon Dinner if Gus has either for sale between the start of the game and Alex's birthday in mid Summer. But only do this for villagers you either want to romance as quickly as possible, or for villagers you want something from that require a minimum amount of hearts for. If a cheaper and / or more easily acquired loved gift is available to you (like Strawberries for Maru and Demetrius), don't worry about buying pricier gifts for them. You'll get the same amount of progress for a cheap loved gift as you would an expensive one, and when when quality factors into it, the cheap gift of silver of gold quality will give you more progress than a store bought gift.

Random tip #3: If you're playing single player, consider building a cottage on your farm whether you plan to have a friend join you or not. For me, I usually place mine right near the shipping container so I can easily reach it. Why? Because each cottage comes with its own set of tools, and you can use them as well as your own. This makes it possible to start upgrading your watering can very early on without having to wait or plan around a rainy day. Obviously, this isn't something you'll do as you plant a lot more crops as the game progresses, but it's a nice thing to have when you're starting to upgrade your tools. It also serves as a place for my furnaces early on, and seed generators as well later on (I usually only have 10 of each), and as a place to put extra chests to store random crap I come across, typically the geode minerals and any artifacts that I might use for decoration later on.

Random tip #4: Don't be afraid to sell high value items you might find in any treasure chests you get while fishing, especially any valuable gems if you're trying to gain as much gold as possible for the egg festival. Yes, you'll eventually need 1 of each gem like Diamonds, Rubies, and Emeralds for the museum, but you'll come across them later on in the game, and it's ok to dump stuff early in the game when you're trying to obtain gold. For me, the only exceptions to this tip is a gold bar and a fire quartz. If you're doing the CC, you want to put them in their bundles as soon as possible so you can start using mine carts to get to the mines and Clint's house when doing upgrades quickly and more efficiently.

Random tip #5: Learn to love eating algae. Seriously, you'll catch a fair amount of it as you are fishing, and they make a free, if not disgusting, food you can use for energy to continue fishing. Also don't be afraid of eating any food you find in trash cans, though you will want to save any high energy restoration food if you push yourself on growing a lot of crops or plan to make a heavy push in the mines, and sometimes, you just won't find enough spring onions to make that possible. Still though, yuck!
 
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