Stardew Valley Train Guide

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Callum Marshall

Callum is the gaming managing editor and a certified Stardew Valley aficionado, pouring hundreds if not thousands of hours into this relaxing indie title. While overseeing the day-to-day running of the site, you'll commonly see Callum carve out some time to produce some content on one of his favorite games of all time, and lead from the front. Callum has been around the block within the gaming industry, working as an Editor-in-chief for a number of well-respected gaming outlets, he has worked as a games tester, he has gaming podcast experience, has worked in gaming PR. Basically, you name it, and Callum was probably there or somewhere on the periphery.

Latest posts by Callum Marshall (see all)

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Stardew Valley is a game that prides itself on its simplicity and its innate ability to hook the player and keep them playing for hundreds of hours. This game sunk its hooks into me quite some time ago, more than half a decade ago, in fact, and thanks to the addictive gameplay and the content that has expanded drastically over the years, I can’t seem to get enough.

There are so many things to do in Stardew Valley, so many people to meet, so many secrets to uncover, and so much money to be made, to the point that you could play this game forever. We reckon you would never get bored.

However, no matter how many times I seem to start a new farm and tackle this game again, there always seems to be something new to discover. For many, a lot of these discoveries happen at the northern-most point of Pelican Town.

In the area where you’ll find a passageway to the Witch’s Hut, the Spa, and various other oddities, you will also find Train tracks that run through the area.

This may seem like many like set dressing, but in fact, a train does regularly pass through. This may seem like a pleasant but inconsequential occurrence, but this is actually something that the player can use to their advantage as there is more to this Train than meets the eye.

However, you may be wondering what this Train has to offer you, how you can use this passing Train to your benefit, or you may be wondering how you even access the area where the train tracks are.

Well, we assure you that all these things will be revealed and more. So join us as we deep dive into the railway system in Stardew Valley. Here is our extensive Stardew Valley Train Guide.

What is the Train in Stardew Valley?

As you might have gathered, the Train in Stardew Valley is a locomotive that travels through Stardew Valley every once in a while. This Train has a set schedule and appears in the northern area of the map.

The Train has multiple carriages, and the type of Train usually indicates what sort of cargo the Train is carrying. Here is a quick rundown of what types of Train that might be hauling cargo when it passes through:

• Brown (Cargo) – This is the most common Train that will pass through the town. This mainly carries essential resources like Coal, Wood, Stone, etc.
• Red – This type of train/carriage usually indicates that there are rare presents on board. However, this type of Train only appears in the Winter
• Blue -This is a Joja branded train that moves at twice the speed of a regular train; this Train usually has exciting items to offer.
• Brown (Passengers) – This is a train that moves at twice the average speed of the standard cargo train; this looks like a conventional commercial train and often provides Coal and other resources.
• Grey – This is another Joja Branded train that travels at a slower speed compared to the other Joja train. This Train offers some interesting items but items that aren’t as good as the Blue train.

Where Is the Train in Stardew Valley?

If you haven’t encountered the Train or been prompted with the message on-screen reading ‘a Train is passing through Stardew Valley’. Likely, you aren’t too far along in your farming adventure. The area where the Train passes through at the beginning of the game is locked away behind a huge boulder.

This isn’t a hurdle that you can simply mine away or blow up with bombs. Still, as you progress, this area will become available thanks to an earthquake overnight. This always happens on the 3rd day of Summer and grants you access to the Railroad. This area is located in the Mountains directly behind Robin‘s Carpentry Shop.

When the debris is clear, you will see a stair set that leads you to this new area. Once there, you will see several new landmarks and, most notably, the train track that runs through the area.

When Does the Train Operate in Stardew Valley?

The Train in Stardew Valley works off of a schedule for a portion of the game, namely the first two seasons. Then from that point onwards, the Train will begin to operate on random days. However, regardless of which day the Train arrives, it will always pass through Stardew Valley between 9 am and 6 pm. Here is a rundown of the schedule that the Train works from initially:

Year One

• 8th of Summer – 1 pm
• 13th of Fall – 9 am
• 2nd of Winter – 5 pm

Year Two

• 16th of Spring – 1:30 pm
• 5th of Summer – 1:30 pm
• 28th of Summer – 11 am
• 2nd of Fall – 4:30 pm
• 21st of Fall – 12:50 pm
• 23rd of Fall – 3 pm

After this, the Train will arrive at random days and times throughout the rest of the playthrough. However, the frequency remains about the same. So expect about 5/6 random trains per year.

Why is the Train Important in Stardew Valley?

So, we have established that the Train carries different types of cargo, and we have established its schedule. However, you may still be asking yourself why it’s so important to walk all the way up into the mountains to see this Train. Well, we hope to shed some light on this here. Check it out:

Resources

The first benefit of going to see what the Train has to offer is that it may drop some useful raw resources. While this isn’t the most efficient way to collect items like wood and stone, which will often fall off the Train, it is a good source of Coal.

Depending on your playstyle and preference toward the mines, it may not always be in steady supply. So if you need to smelt a copper bar and you are caught short, this can be a real-life saver.

Clothing

Perhaps one of the most unique and exciting offerings that the Train can provide within Stardew Valley is a unique armor type. The Train often drops a unique variant of boots called Leprechaun Shoes. Now, again, if you made it even halfway down the Pelican town mines, these shoes won’t be super appealing as they only offer +1 Defence and +2 Immunity.

However, aesthetically they are superb, and as an Irishman myself, I’m always keen to add them to my collection. So if you share in that desire, be sure to check on the Train when it rolls through.

Geodes & Ore

Then lastly, the Train is often stocked with Geodes and raw ore such as copper ore and iron ore. Once again, we aren’t suggesting that visiting the Train once in a Blue Moon is a suitable substitute for hitting the mines.

However, if you want a couple of extra ores to add up to a whole bar or some more geodes to help bolster your Museum collection, then this can be a nice bonus.

What Other Benefits Does this Area Have?

We can’t speak about the railroad without talking about the other aspects of this area within the game. It is one of the more forgotten areas of the game, but one that has untapped potential and can be convenient if you know how to utilize it. So here is a quick rundown of other things you should know about the Railroad Area:

The Spa

Firstly, we have what is perhaps the marquee fixture of this area, the Spa. This is a bathhouse where players can enter, and when in the hot, steamy water, the player will see their health and energy restored at quite a steady rate. This can be a great asset to players, especially in the first summer month.

The Witch’s Hut

If players have completed the community center, the player will then access the late game content within this indie title, and one such quest is the Dark Talisman Quest.

In this quest, the player will need to access an area in the northeast corner of the Railroad Area, and this will lead to the Witch’s Hut. Just be sure to bring some Void Mayonaise to appease the Goblin guarding the gates.

Extra Forage

A footnote in the benefits of this area for sure, but if you are on a little trip around Pelican Town, foraging for goodies, it can be easy to forget that this area exists. One might think that this area wouldn’t be a place to collect forage, but we assure you, you’ll be able to grab a few tasty treats.

A Machine Haven

When you are very far through the game and are beginning to optimize all aspects of your output, space can be at a premium, especially on your farm. This means that players will then look for quiet areas where they can place machines away from character pathways which would destroy the machines.

The Railroad area is an excellent area to place machines and add to your potential profits. We will say that it isn’t an untouched area by characters, and Abigail tends to spend a lot of time at the train platform. So be sure to monitor their paths before placing machines, but overall, it’s an excellent option to have.

Prehistoric Tibia

Then lastly, if you have tried to complete the Museum collection, you’ll understand that the real battle begins once you collect all of the minerals. You’ll have to collect all the rare artifacts, and they can be pretty tough to find, so improving your odds is always something you want to try and do.

There is only one artifact that you can collect in this area: the Prehistoric Tibia. This can be collected elsewhere in the Cindersap Forest, but only 0.6% of the time. Whereas in the Railroad Area, you have a 4-8% chance, which is a considerable bump. So be sure to prioritize this area when looking for this artifact.

Can the Train Kill You in Stardew Valley

Just like in real life, if you stand on the tracks in Stardew Valley and take on a moving train, there is only going to be one winner in that exchange. If you get hit by the Train, you will lose a small amount of energy and be knocked back to a safe distance.

However, you can easily get trapped in the eastern tunnel, and this will see you constantly get hit with damage as the Train passes through.

Trains tend to be quite long and move rather slow, so if you get caught in this loop, the chances are that you will probably end up in Harvey’s surgery. It’s easily avoidable, but just as a precaution, this is a warning. Don’t try and fight a train.

FAQs

Stardew Valley Train Guide: All Aboard!

As you can see from the information above, the railroad and the Train that passes through Stardew Valley have a lot to offer players.

If you are lucky, you can get your hands on some great resources, some interesting apparel, and other cool presents that can help you on your journey to farming stardom. We hope that this guide gave you all the information you were looking for and as always, thank you for reading SdewHQ!