One of the biggest events of the year in Stardew Valley is the Stardew Valley Fair. This event takes place in the Town Square on the 16th day of Fall each year, and you can enter between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m.
Once inside the Stardew Valley Fair, you don’t need to worry about time passing. The fair only ends when you leave the Town Square. There’s lots to do here, including a long list of mini-games and activities. Everything you do gives you the chance to stock up on Star Tokens, which can be exchanged for exclusive items. There’s even a Fortune Teller who will tell you things about the upcoming year.
With so much to do, it’s easy to be overwhelmed the first time you enter this event but don’t worry, it’s not too daunting once you break it down.
How to get Star Tokens at the Stardew Valley Fair
To obtain all of the exclusive items from this event, you’ll need 4,600 Star Tokens. This sounds like a lot, but there are multiple ways to earn this event currency.
Grange Display
Once you attend the Stardew Valley Fair, the first thing you should do is set up your Grange Display by interacting with the empty box outside Pierre’s General Store.
In order to win the Grange Display competition, you need a total of 90 or more points. These points are earned in the following ways:
- 14 points awarded automatically for entering
- The number of items on display:
- 5 items gives one point
- 6 items gives 3 points
- 7 items gives 5 points
- 8 items gives 7 points
- 9 items gives 9 points
- Item categories filled (see below)
- Quality of items on display
The items you can display within your Grange Display are separated into nine categories, with each category filled adding 5 points to your total score, in addition to the points scored for the item itself. Higher quality items will, understandably, gain you more points.
- Animal Products
- Artisan Goods
- Cooking
- Fish
- Forageable items
- Fruit
- Minerals
- Vegetables
A good rule of thumb to maximise your chances of winning the Grange Display is to fill your display with as many different kinds of Iridium quality items.
If you manage to get first place in Grange Display, you’ll net yourself 1,000 Star Tokens, but if you’re unprepared there is a way to guarantee 750 Star Tokens without too much effort. If you’ve got Mayor Lewis’ Lucky Purple Shorts (either through the ‘proper’ way from Marnie’s bedroom or via the 1.6 addition of Mayor Lewis’ basement), you can include them in your Grange Display as a way to extort Star Tokens out of the Mayor.
Sadly, doing this will get you disqualified, but you’ll have some Star Tokens to play with so it’s not all bad news.
Fishing Minigame
After paying 50 Gold, players can take part in the fishing minigame located at the Stardew Valley Fair. Every fish caught during the minigame is worth between 12 and 25 points, while non-fish items (such as trash) will reward one point. Star Tokens are rewarded in reflection of your point score.
The fishing minigame can be repeated as many times as you like while at the Valley Fair.
Slingshot Minigame
Like the fishing minigame, the slingshot minigame costs 50 Gold per turn. Once inside, you’ll need to use your slingshot to break apart targets as they move across the screen. Think Duck Hunt, but minus the ducks.
There are three different types of targets that can possibly be hit:
- Red targets give 1 point
- Blue targets give 2 points
- Purple targets give 5 points
Once you’ve completed the game, you’ll be rewarded a multiplier based on how accurate your shots were and Star Tokens are rewarded based on your final point score.
Again, this can be played as many times as you like or can afford.
Smashing Stone
This activity is a free test of strength and timing. Although the maximum number of Star Tokens this can earn you is a single one, you can earn bragging rights if you manage to get the timing perfected and earn the token.
Token Seller
If you’re not up for the minigames or find that you’re particularly terrible at them (trust me, I’ve been there), but with a pocket full of Gold, you can always visit the Token Seller who will give you one Star Token for 50 Gold.
Obviously this is the most expensive method to get Star Tokens, but if you’re in a hurry or feeling impatient, the option is there.
Spinning Wheel
The Spinning Wheel is essentially gambling. You can either place your bet on Orange or Green, choose how much you want to bet and if the wheel stops spinning on your color, you’ll receive double the amount that you bet.
If you want to maximise your Star Token profit, there’s a really easy way to approach this minigame:
Always bet on Green. The mathematic probability of the wheel landing on Green is 75%, compared to the 25% probability that it will land on Orange. When making your first bet, make sure that you bet just enough so that if you do happen to lose, you can double your bet next time to recover the money you lost.
For instance. If you just won the Grange Display and have 1,000 Star Tokens to play with, bet 250 on Green. If you win, you’ll have 1,250. If, however, you lose, you’ll be down to 750. Bet 500 on Green and you’ll recover the tokens you lost on your first go and still get 250. If you’ve just bet 500 and won, go back to betting 250.
How to spend Star Tokens at the Stardew Valley Fair
Once you’ve got enough Star Tokens, head to Pierre’s Stall and you can exchange them for event exclusive items.
| Item | Description | Cost (in Star Tokens) |
| Dried Sunflowers | Indoor decoration | 100 |
| Fedora | Hat | 500 |
| Rarecrow #1 | Scarecrow | 800 |
| Stardrop | Can only be purchased once | 2,000 |
| Prize Ticket | Used at Lewis’ Prize Machine | 1,000 |
| Light Green Rug | Indoor decoration | 500 |
