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After completing the Community Center in Stardew Valley, you will have the opportunity to visit Ginger Island and complete tons of new content. Here, Mr. Qi will make an appearance, but he offers you some quests much earlier in the game as well. In this guide, we'll take a look back at one of Mr. Qi's first quests.
Stardew Valley: The Community Center Vs. JojaMart
While the game pushes you to fix up the Community Center, there is another option. Here are the pros and cons of each.Early on in the game, you will be able to work on the quest The Mysterious Qi. This quest is a bit long, however, the reward of access to the Casino is definitely worth it. Before completing this quest, you will need to have the Desert area unlocked. This can be done by repairing the bus through a Community Center bundle (or paying for it through JojaMart).
Updated January 20, 2024 by Jacqueline Zalace: Stardew Valley's Casino can be difficult to enter if you don't know what to do. We've updated the formatting of this guide and included a bit more information on completing the questline. Now, you should be able to get past the bouncer and enter the Casino in no time.
How To Begin The Mysterious Qi
To start The Mysterious Qi quest, head to the bus stop just east of your farm. Once you are at the bus stop, head to the left. You will enter into a new area with a tunnel called the Backwoods.
Head through this tunnel into a dimly lit area; along the back wall of the tunnel, there will be a box. It will be very dark, but this is the only thing you can interact with so you should be able to find it pretty quickly.
Interacting with the box will bring up a message, mentioning that you must place a battery inside of this box. When the battery is placed, the rest of the quest will begin.
There are a few ways to get a battery; the easiest is by crafting and placing a lightning rod, and then waiting for a storm. Below, you can find the necessary materials needed to make one lightning rod.
- 1x Iron Bar
- 1x Refined Quartz
- 5x Bat Wing
You can also wait until it is sold at the Traveling Cart. Overall, it should be simple to get just one. Now that you have triggered the rest of the quest, let's go over the required tasks that you need to complete.
Optional Ways To Start The Mysterious Qi
There are two optional ways that you can start this quest. First, you can begin this quest by finding Secret Note #22. This note will mention a 'secret' in a dark tunnel, which is the one described above.
The second way to start this quest is by finding an untitled lost book in the library. This book will inform you that Gunther saw something weird in a tunnel that leads out of Pelican Town.
Both of these methods are optional, and won't affect the outcome of the quest.
How To Place A Rainbow Shell At The Train Station
Placing the battery within the tunnel will immediately prompt you with the next task, which is to place a Rainbow Shell inside the box at the train station.
The train station can be found in the Railroad area, which is directly north of Robin's house. The area is blocked off until Summer 3, when an earthquake removes the boulder blocking the entrance.
Once you have made it to the Railroad, head to the train station in the upper right corner. There will be a box sitting on the platform. This is where you place the Rainbow Shell.
Rainbow Shells can be found at the beach during the summer or bought from the Traveling Cart. They are pretty rare, so be sure to always save at least one shell so that you don't have to wait until summer if you are completing the quest in another season.
How To Put Beets In Mayor Lewis' Fridge
Placing the Rainbow Shell in the box will prompt an additional quest to put ten beets inside Mayor Lewis' fridge. Beets grow during the Fall, and their seeds can be purchased from the Oasis shop in the desert.
It takes a beet seed six days to grow, so if you do not have any beets, you will need to wait for six days until you can complete this step.
If you have some beets, but not enough to complete this quest, you can also place them into the seed maker. This is a piece of equipment that will create seeds based on the fruit or vegetable placed inside.
How To Feed The Desert Dragon A Solar Essence
After the beets are placed in Mayor Lewis's fridge, the next task will be to 'feed the desert dragon his last meal.' This is a bit cryptic, but you have to give the dragon skeleton a Solar Essence in the desert. The dragon will be on the left-hand side of the desert map, directly under the road.
Solar essences are a type of monster loot that you can find in a few different ways. Let's go over the two best ways to obtain this item.
Slaying Monsters
Solar essences can be obtained from the following monsters. Additionally, you can see their chance to drop the item, and where the monster can be found.
Can You Buy Solar Essences?
The quickest way to obtain a solar essence is to purchase one from Krobus. This is an NPC that can be found in the Sewers every day of the week after you obtain the Rusty Key. Here, you will be able to purchase ten solar essences a day for 80g each.
How To Inspect The Lumber Next To Your House
After feeding the desert dragon, you have just one more task left! Once you feed the desert dragon, all you have to do is inspect the lumber next to your house. Simply walk on your front deck in front of the woodpile and interact with it.
Interacting with the lumber pile will reward you with the club card, which provides access to the Casino.
Rewards For Completing The Mysterious Qi Quest
After completing these tasks, you will have access to the Casino. To enter, visit the Desert and go to the Oasis shop. In the back of the shop, a bouncer will be standing in front of the entrance. Talk to him and you will be able to proceed through the entrance to the Casino.
What Are Qi Coins?
The games within the Casino can reward you with Qi coins. In the smaller room on the right side of the Casino, you will be able to exchange these coins for a variety of objects including furniture, paintings, and a warp totem back to your farm.
From the ATM-style machine at the top of the main room, you will also be able to trade your money for Qi coins.
Gamble With Qi Coins
There are a few games available to play within the Casino; two CalicoJack tables and some slot machines. The slot machines are easy to use. Just walk up to one and spin the wheel. Certain icons will give you Qi coins, but every spin will cost you either ten or 100 coins.
Each side of the Casino holds one CalicoJack table as well; this is Stardew Valley's version of blackjack. Both tables are CalicoJack, but the one on the right involves higher stakes.
The game involves drawing cards in an attempt to get a total number of 21, with your opponent's cards hidden. To win this game, you will need to score higher than the dealer without going over 21. It sounds confusing at first, but the game is easy to get the hang of.
Gambling in the Casino involves some luck, but you can improve your luck in a few different ways. Check the TV in your house during the morning to see if you have good luck.
Try not to gamble on days where you have bad luck. Alternatively, you can improve your luck with food, like Lucky Lunch, which boosts your luck by +3.
Purchase Unique Items With Qi Coins
In addition to these games, there are some additional tasks that you can accomplish.
While at the Casino, you can check some interesting in-game stats in the top left corner (bear-shaped machine). You will not be able to check your progress toward completion at this bear machine; these stats are just meant for fun.
Additionally, you can purchase the Statue of Endless Fortune from the person to the right of the Qi Coin Exchange terminal. The statue produces one valuable item a day, including a loved item on each villager's birthday. This item is quite expensive, costing you 1,000,000g.
