Learn how to win the Grange Display Contest in Stardew Valley!
The Stardew Valley Fair occurs every 16th of Fall, one of the most anticipated festivals in Stardew Valley. In this event, villagers who are exceptionally skilled at crafting things from natural materials have a chance to showcase their art. Villagers known for the goods they produce that they can easily sell also get an opportunity to exhibit them in the Grange Display Contest.
Fall is often described as misty and dreamy, and it’s no doubt one of the most atmospheric seasons in the game. Fall is also the season where you can experience two of the best festivals in Pelican Town: The Spirit’s Eve and The Stardew Valley Fair.
The Fair is a rust-colored event with Mini-games like the addicting Fishing Mini-Game that can get you hooked for at least half an hour. Winning these games will earn you Star Tokens, which you can trade for items in the Token Seller’s booth. The Token Seller has items exclusive for this event, but the best item you can acquire from him is possibly The Stardrop Fruit.
There are multiple ways to obtain Star Tokens, but winning in the Grange Display Contest is the fastest way to earn them in Stardew Valley. So, in today’s article, we will give you some tips on how to win in the Grange Display Contest to acquire that sought-after Stardrop Fruit in your first year.
Your Biggest Adversary
You’ll compete against Marnie, Willy, and Pierre in the Grange Display Contest. Marnie displays all the animal products from her ranch, Willy brings all the best fish he’s caught, and Pierre showcases all the crops he has harvested throughout the year.
Being a farmer means you have all the items and resources kept on your farm that will help you win this contest. However, watch out for Pierre because he will give you a run for your money for trying to compete against him.
Pierre owns the second-biggest establishment in Pelican Town. With all the retailed goods he provides for the villagers daily, it is unsurprising that he usually comes out on top in this kind of contest. How you defeat him will depend on the points you get from the items you put on display.
The Rules of the Contest
Mayor Lewis will be the host and the judge for this event, like he does at every festival. He will do his best to judge the contest fairly and squarely since just by participating, you will already receive 14 points. You will score 1 point for every item in your box. Therefore, having nine items will already earn you 9 points. This is how you get the points:
- 9 Items – Plus 9 Points
- 8 Items – Plus 7 Points
- 7 Items – Plus 5 Points
- 6 Items – Plus 3 Points
- 5 Items – Plus 1 Point
Even if you don’t put much thought into the items you choose, try to fill up all the spaces in your box anyway because you will get a penalty for having less than five items. Thus:
- 4 Items – Minus 1 point
- 3 Items – Minus 3 points
- 2 Items – Minus 5 points
- 1 Item – Minus 7 points
- 0 Item – Minus 9 points
The Star Token you will gain will be based on how many points you’ll accumulate in the contest:
- First place – 1,000 Star Tokens
- Second Place – 500 Star Tokens
- Third Place – 200 Star Tokens
- Fourth Place – 50 Star Tokens
- Disqualified – 750 Star Tokens
You’ll win First place for scoring 90 points, Second place if you score 75 points, Third Place for scoring 60 points, and if you score lower than 50 points, you’ll get Fourth Place. You can get disqualified if you include Mayor Lewis’ Lucky Purple Shorts in the Grange Display, but you won’t go home empty-handed as the Mayor will bribe you with 750 Star Tokens in exchange for keeping quiet about his shorts.
The Mayor’s judging criteria for every item are calculated based on their price, meaning the higher the value of your item, the more points you’ll get. Your product’s quality will also affect your display’s overall score.
Picking Out The Best Items
Some items from several categories are favored in this contest, and including items from each category would be preferable. You will get an extra 5 points for every item you use yourself from in the following categories:
Foraged Items: The foraged item you must choose is an iridium-level quality. Aside from mushrooms and the usual foraged goods you can pick up from the ground, the contest also considers flowers and tree saps. If you’re in your first year, a Fairy Rose would be a good choice for this category, but if you don’t have one stashed away, you can use a Purple Mushroom instead.
Minerals: Pick one from your collection of rocks, gems, or artifacts. If you’re like most people and spend much time in The Mines in your first year, choosing minerals such as Neptunite or Helvite will give you a high score. If you have an extra Prismatic Shard, you’re in luck. Prismatic Shard is guaranteed to earn you 6 points since it usually sells for 2,000 gold.
Vegetables: It’s easy to choose the best vegetable with the highest value in the market, but in your first year, you might have a limited selection of crops stored away in your chest. Use a Pumpkin or a Red Cabbage if you harvested them, and save some for this contest.
Fruits: You can have a surplus of fruits in this game, but if you’re a newbie, you won’t be able to get them quickly in your first year, that is, if you consider the prices of Fruit Saplings. However, it’s an entirely different story for players who have chosen the Fruit Bat Cave instead of the Mushroom Cave. Apples or Peaches that you can find in your Fruit Bat Cave will suffice. Still, the best fruit to use, supposing you have some in your storage, is Starfruit.
Fish: If you have some Legendary Fish in your chest, you can use them to gain 6 to 8 points. For first-time players, any type of aquatic creature will do except for Clams as the mayor categorizes it as trash, and including it will not give you that extra 5 points.
Animal Products: You can use Eggs, Milk, Wool, or any product from animals that haven’t been processed in a machine yet. The best Animal Product to include is either an Ostrich Egg or a Golden Egg. Getting Ostriches or Golden Chicken in your first year is next to impossible, so the best choice is Large Goat Milk during this time.
Cooked Items: You can use any food you cook in the kitchen or food bought from the store. For those who haven’t had a kitchen installed in their house yet, you can make a Survival Burger or buy a Trout Soup from Willy’s Fish Shop before the day of the festival.
Artisan Goods: There are a lot of processed goods you can decide on. Ancient Wine, Starfruit Wine, and Truffle Oil are the obvious pick of the litter, but the easiest ones to make in our first year are Goat Cheese, Cloth, Honey, or Jelly.
Note: Since you need to fill nine spaces in your box, you can add another item from any category. Another thing you must remember is to retrieve all the items you put on display before heading back to your farm, or else you will lose them forever.
Winning The First Prize
Mayor Lewis will begin evaluating all your goods if you talk to him and agree to start the judging. He will walk in front of the boxes one by one, and once he’s finished, you can talk to him again to find out the contest results.
You’ll be rewarded with 1,000 Star Tokens if you win the first prize. The Stardrop Fruit will become more attainable after acquiring that amount of Star Tokens. You may also talk to Pierre again and watch his reaction upon losing the contest. There is no limit to how long you can stay at the fair, so you can continue collecting Tokens until you have enough to purchase your desired item from the Token Seller.
