An extremely unlucky Stardew Valley player has sparked discussion about the nature of lightning rods and how to properly use them. The cozy farming and small town simulator is full of everyday farming things like harvesting crops, raising chickens, and romancing the townspeople. There are some quests, though, that take the game beyond its humble farming roots, to greater heights and stranger occurrences.

One of these unique features is the ability to craft battery packs by harvesting the power of lightning using specialized rods. These batteries can then be used for a variety of things, including the unlocking of the mysterious Ginger Island. Unfortunately for Redditor Eastern-Spend-4438, their large array of lightning rods managed to get a measly one single battery pack, prompting them to exclaim: "I waited all year for a storm and this is what I get."

How To Use Stardew Valley's Lightning Rods

It's Part Luck, Part Preparation

Stardew Valley's lightning rods are simple to use in theory, but a bit more of a challenge to use correctly since they rely so much on luck. The rods have a chance of being struck by lightning during a thunderstorm, in itself a rare event. Besides protecting the farm from lightning strikes, which could otherwise destroy trees and crops, a struck rod also creates a useful battery pack item.

Although a lot of this depends on random luck, there are a few things that can be done to tip the balance of luck in your favor. One of the most important things to is that lightning will only strike when the player is awake, so staying awake as long as possible that day is in the player's best interest. (The unlucky Redditor states that they stayed up until 12.)

Despite what some players say, player placement and lightning rod placement don't matter, but luck does. The number of daily lightning strikes increases with the player's luck. Luck varies day by day, but it's possible to increase your luck by eating certain foods and having the Special Charm and Lucky Ring items equipped. It's also worth ing that thunderstorms never occur in the winter season. Finally, the more lightning rods you have placed, the higher the chance of getting multiple strikes, since once a rod is struck once, as the saying goes, lightning will not strike twice in the same place.

The Inner Workings Of Stardew Valley Are Still A Mystery To Many

Players Can Still Enjoy The Game At Any Level

Stardew Valley is one of the most beloved cozy games of all time, and part of the reason why it's so popular is its many layers of depth. Players can play and enjoy the title without ever needing to get too deep into it, while others can get as granular as they like. For one player, the game might look like a simple farming simulator with a cute subplot of a romantic fling, while another might spend hours setting up the perfect array of lightning rods so they can travel to a new island revealed to them by a mysterious stranger.

Either way, no matter how deeply into the lore and gameplay mechanics players get, there's always something new to discover. For many Stardew Valley players, like the original poster of this unlucky ordeal, there will always be new things to learn about the inner workings of this now-classic title.

Source: Eastern-Spend-4438/Reddit