Who do you guys believe is the best Bachelor/Bachelorette?

There will be thread after thread on this, here or on reddit. It’s going to come down to personal preference.

I’ve got a fair bit of gray in my hair, so the recent high school grads are out for me in any game where my farmer is patterned after myself. It would just feel too wrong.

Ultimately, I go with Emily, but Leah is a Very close second. Both of them are basically functioning adults who already have their lives together.

Sure Emily is quirky, but I like that, and in a world with Junimos, Forest Magic, Wizards and Witches, who says Emily is wrong about Crystal Healing, or sensing strong presences during Green Rain? In our world sure you can write it off as new age hippy chick, but in Stardew? Maybe she’s in tune with the world’s magic.
 

Maher

Farmer
It really depends what you like. My best experiences have been with Maru (she gives you bombs), Leah, Elliot, and Haley.
 

FilthyGorilla

Local Legend
Honestly the experience isn't too different for any of them, it comes down to what personality/dialogue you like most, whose spouse room/outside area you like most, and what 14 heart event you find the best.

Other than that, the gifts aren't anything special and don't make a huge difference, there aren't any big changes to behavior (contrary to popular belief, Shane doesn't revert to an alcoholic, it only has some hints towards it if you get to low hearts with him and all the spouses become depressed when you do).

Some like to pick npcs whose lives aren't affected by marrying, because in their headcanon they're depriving the npc of a life they could have lived (but never do because of the stagnant infinite existence of the game), that they would have had if they didn't marry (most npcs do lose any motivation upon marriage tbh so it's fair to say).
 

nicodeux

Farmer
I agree with @FilthyGorilla. Basically, you will have the same behaviours whoever you choose to marry.

Gifts are not game changers, especially as they are random and not daily. They are usefull, yes, but do not make your decision based on that.

Bachelors/bachelorettes personnality (and therefore their dialogue lines) should be your main reason to pick one rather than the other. This means that only you can decide who would be the best spouse for your farmer!
 

Caviar

Planter
Simple question, simple answer. This is an amazingly complicated character once you really get to know them, with good days and bad. They begin by simply pushing you away, but over time they trust you more and more. You learn that that mean exterior is hiding an extremely kind and sweet heart.

The villager? Shane! :shane::bchicken:
 
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FilthyGorilla

Local Legend
I agree with @FilthyGorilla. Basically, you will have the same behaviours whoever you choose to marry.

Gifts are not game changers, especially as they are random and not daily. They are usefull, yes, but do not make your decision based on that.

Bachelors/bachelorettes personnality (and therefore their dialogue lines) should be your main reason to pick one rather than the other. This means that only you can decide who would be the best spouse for your farmer!
To add on to both of our points too, age/perceived age/maturity can also be a deciding factor for some. While it could be considered an aspect of personality (behaviorally), I think it's also worth mentioning purely because of the sheer amount of people I see who could 'never be with X' npc because of how young they feel. Definitely makes sense if you're older and looking back at someone like Sam or Abigail who are (perceptually) really young even without listed ages.
 

Lew Zealand

Helper
The best marriage candidate is a very personal question for many players, especially the first time they play. Coming into the game, I had no idea it was even part of gameplay as I'd never played a game like Stardew before, so it was quite a surprise to find that there was more of a relationship part of the game other than befriending someone. LOL so I jumped in with both feet and have married 5 different people on 5 longer-term saves.

I can see how people with different perspectives and life experiences would be interested in different candidates but IMO there's no best candidate. Put another way, in each of my saves the best candidate was the one I married because I'm RPGing the game and telling extra stories to flesh them out the longer I play. Age is a major factor for some but again, that's something you can adjust in your head as I know quite a few rather immature people for their age (raises hand), so some of even Abigail's and Sam's behavior can be explained this way if you so choose. Elliott and Leah can be aged up easily and Harvey's already there for many people and can be aged up as far as you want! And they're not the only ones.

General personality and gifts are important to many but I find none of the personalities to be incompatible and the simple fact that sooo many people like Haley and Shane show that people are interested in mining the details and nuances of Villagers, even if they're a bit standoffish at first. I remember meeting Shane for the first, second, and third times and saying out loud to my computer: "I see right through you mister and we're already friends even though you haven't figured it out yet!"

Life's a journey and the game tries to give you 14 different ways of taking that journey when it comes to sharing your Farmhouse, which is great! This game more than any I've played is about the freedom to make a long series of choices, none of which are bad, each merely being a different flavor.

Sample them all! Guaranteed not to disappoint.
 
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