In the 1.5 update, one of Stardew Valley’s most mysterious figures makes another appearance. After unlocking the Walnut Room on Ginger Island, players once again meet Mr. Qi—and big surprise, he has more challenges to test their greatness.
Once the player completes one of Mr. Qi’s new “Qi Challenges,” he will reward them with Qi Gems that they can redeem for highly useful items. All of these quests can be repeated for an indefinite number of Qi Gems. Some of these tasks are fairly simple, while others are nigh impossible. Here’s a ranking of every new task Mr. Qi poses in Stardew Valley 1.5, from easiest to hardest.
Updated July 14, 2021 by Demaris Oxman: Stardew Valley remains a refuge for players who enjoy peaceful games, and the Qi Challenges continue to add an aspect of tension and excitement. For longtime players, they’re a new obstacle to overcome that helps prevent the game from getting stale. Yet, even veterans can have trouble with the more taxing of Mr. Qi’s demands; thus, we’ve updated this list to include a few strategies on how to complete his special orders.
10 Four Precious Stones
On a surface level, this quest looks pretty difficult to complete. With the rarity of Prismatic Shards, collecting four of them in a single month takes concentrated effort and huge amounts of luck. However, unlike most Qi Challenges and special orders, the stones don’t have to be found after the player receives the quest.
In other words, players have as much time as they need to collect four Prismatic Shards. Hoard them in a chest, and accept the challenge once the necessary number has been met.
How To Complete It
Simply look for Prismatic Shards in the deeper levels of the mines and Skull Cavern. It can take awhile to find four of them, but be patient. Once the player has their stack ready, accept Qi’s “Four Precious Stones” challenge.
9 Qi’s Prismatic Grange
This challenge calls for the most items out of any other, as it requires 100 each of red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple items. The trickiest part of this quest is figuring out which items count for which colors.
Most categories contain items that can be found in large quantities, such as fiber for green and copper ore for orange. As with “Four Precious Stones,” players can collect the necessary items before accepting the challenge, and then deposit them in the collection box for some easy Qi Gems.
Amass 100 items of each color, and drop them in the box. Note that these do not have to be the same item; for example, a player can use 40 fiber, 55 green beans, and 5 radioactive ore to complete the “green” color. Some of the easiest items to collect for each color include:
8 Qi’s Kindness
After accepting this challenge, the player has one week to give 50 loved gifts. Though it seems intimidating at first, this quest becomes quite easy once the player gets to know their friends’ and neighbors’ favorite things.
As with previous challenges, stocking up on items beforehand makes this goal easier to reach. Take some time to learn about who loves which gifts, or things that are universally loved. Collect these items to give out and spread joy once the challenge is active.
Before accepting the quest, take time to learn what gifts are Loved by which villagers. Players can see their preferences by clicking on them in the character menu screen. Once some of these favorites have been revealed, stock up on those items before accepting Qi’s quest. Additionally, keep universally Loved gifts in mind.
7 Extended Family
Essentially, this challenge asks players to catch all of the Legendary Fish (or specifically, their relatives) within three days. There are only four of these fish, but they’re not easy to catch by any means.
Recipes that raise the Fishing skill are helpful here, such as Dish o’ the Sea or Seafoam Pudding. Using the right tackle can help as well. More than that, though, this quest takes a lot of patience. It might take a few tries for some players to complete.
Each required fish can be found in the same location as their Legendary relative. For practice, reel in the Legendary fish themselves – once the player has done it once, they can do it again! The best tackle options include the cork bobber, which increases the size of the fishing bar, and the trap bobber, which decreases the rate at which the “catching” bar on the right falls.
6 Qi’s Cuisine
This quest asks the player to cook and ship 100,000g worth of food. Items cooked before the start of the challenge don’t count, so stocking up on ingredients before beginning is the key to success.
Planning ahead is key in this challenge. Don’t be afraid to do some research into which recipes are the most valuable, and store their ingredients in the fridge. For late-game players, 100,000g might not seem like a vast amount, but many will soon see that it’s hard to earn with food alone.
One way to accomplish this (without spending a lot of money) is to brew vast amounts of coffee in kegs before starting the challenge. Players can then use this to make Triple Espresso, which can be sold for 450g. 223 Triple Espressos will meet the goal.
Other high-value recipes include Fish Taco, Tropical Curry, and Pink Cake. Players should take advantage of these if they can, but their ingredients can take a bit more effort to gather reliably.
5 Danger In The Deep
In this quest, the mine elevator is reset and each area of the mines takes on a new appearance with more difficult enemies. The player has a week to make it to the bottom.
Since the Stardew Valley mine has an elevator, the player can advance a few levels per day. This makes the challenge less gut-punishing than the Skull Cavern ones, which require reaching level 100 in one go. However, it’s still no pushover, considering the new threats to contend with.
In order to finish the challenge in the allotted time, players need to advance by 20 levels each day, with little wiggle room. Be sure to pack plenty of consumables and bombs to avoid death by the new monsters. Additionally, bring a warp totem or return scepter along, to maximize the time the player can spend in the mines before returning to the farm.
4 Qi’s Crop
For this challenge, players must find Qi Beans hidden throughout the world, plant them, and harvest and ship 500 Qi Fruit in a month. Beans can be found in artifact spots, by fishing, chopping down trees, mining, etc.
Tracking down 500 of these beans can be incredibly frustrating. However, players can gain an advantage by using Seed Makers, turning each Qi Fruit harvest into twice as many seeds. Additionally, players can save up Qi Beans while the quest is active, and then use them to complete the challenge later.
Players must ensure they have plenty of space to farm vast amounts of Qi Fruit; the Ginger Island farm is a great place for this. As stated above, Seed Makers are the player’s best friend in this challenge. Don’t ship the first few Qi Fruit harvests; instead, turn them into more Qi Beans. This is a far more reliable method of finding seeds than hunting for them willy-nilly. Only start shipping fruit towards the end of the challenge, and until then, keep making and planting more seeds.
3 Let’s Play a Game
Junimo Kart is deceptively difficult. Achieving the score of 50,000 that Mr. Qi demands can prove time-consuming, especially when the player has a farm to run. Many players—even if they enjoy the minigame itself—don’t find this quest worth the effort.
Considering “Let’s Play a Game” only nets the player ten Qi Gems, it’s a lot more trouble than it’s worth. For players who’ve mastered Junimo Kart, it might pose a fun challenge, but more often it’s a source of frustration.
Practice plenty before accepting the challenge, and memorize strategies for each level. This challenge really just requires quick reflexes and an understanding of the Junimo Kart mechanics, so master the minigame before taking it on.
2 Skull Cavern Invasion
Most Stardew Valley players know the epic struggle of trying to reach level 100 in Skull Cavern – Mr. Qi’s original quest. This challenge asks them to do this again, but this time facing even stronger enemies as they delve through the dungeon.
Players shouldn’t undertake this goal lightly. Stock up on healing items and bombs, wield the Infinity Sword, and don’t be afraid to build staircases. There’s no such thing as cheap tactics to win here – the player must fight for survival.
Food items that boost speed, luck, defense, and combat are especially useful as the player fights their way to victory. Spicy Eel is a great option here, as are Crab Cakes. This challenge will take practice, so don’t get discouraged after a few failed attempts.
1 Qi’s Hungry Challenge
Once again, Mr. Qi has put a new twist on his old challenge. Though Skull Cavern’s monsters are at their usual level of power, the player cannot eat or drink anything this time as they journey to Level 100.
Skull Cavern’s enemies are dangerous even at their usual level, so being unable to restore health makes this challenge absolutely brutal. Above all, players must try not to lose their patience — it can take several tries to achieve this nigh-impossible feat.
One strategy is to build dozens of staircases, using them one after the other. Even so, it can be difficult to avoid damage while placing them. Since players are welcome to chow down before entering Skull Cavern, grab a snack with a Defense or Speed buff first.
Another strategy is to equip the vampire ring, which restores a small amount of HP each time the player slays a monster. In the same vein, take advantage of the Big Slimes in this challenge that show a heart inside; they will drop this upon death, allowing the player some healing.
NEXT: Stardew Valley: Guide To Ginger Island Farming
