In Stardew Valley, one bachelor is overwhelmingly cool. A chill guitar player with permanent bed head, Sam is outgoing, quirky, and kind. He can even skateboard, sort of! With years of practice, it’s possible he’ll one day land that kickflip.
It’s easy to see why he’s such a popular option for romance, but winning him over won’t be simple. Like other villagers, he has a somewhat complex schedule, which means he can be tough to get a hold of at first. He can also be picky about what he likes. Never fear, though, as we’re here to break down everything you need to know to get up to full hearts with the coolest dude in Pelican Town—Sam.
Sam’s Schedule
Sam typically follows a set schedule, but it can deviate from season to season, or if it’s raining, etc. He works a part-time job in Spring and Summer, but not Fall or Winter. He works on Mondays and Wednesdays, leaving around 11am. His shift ends at 4pm, when he heads back to his family home in the southwest corner of Pelican Town. If the Community Center has been restored, he works at The Museum. Otherwise, his default place of work is JojaMart.
On Fridays, he goes to the Saloon. He heads out around 3pm and starts to go home around 9:30pm. On Saturdays, Sebastian visits Sam’s house, arriving around 2pm. The two of them spend most of the day in Sam’s room, though they do head outside for a cigarette from 6-8pm.
On days when he’s free, Sam follows a different schedule, depending on the season. In Spring, he typically relaxes outside, near Mayor Lewis’ house. In Summer, he spends his days at the beach with Vincent, his kid brother. On beach days, he and Vincent will leave around 1:30pm and return around 7pm. In Fall, he explores Cindersap Forest, southwest of Leah’s Cottage. In Winter, he visits the Stardrop Saloon. On all of these days, he leaves around 1:30pm and returns around 7pm.
There are a few exceptions to this schedule. On the 9th and 23rd of each season, he’ll spend his days walking around Pelican Town. If it’s raining, he usually stays home, but he might also go to the Saloon for a few hours, leaving around 2pm. On Fall 11th, he goes for his checkup at Harvey’s Clinic. On Winter 17th, he goes to the Night Market. He might also randomly choose to visit the Beach Resort on any day after it’s unlocked.
Best Gifts For Sam
Vegetables and foraged goods are generally a no-go for Sam, and he’s neutral on fruit. One notable thing about him is he’s the only villager in the game who actually likes Joja Cola. Rather than selling or drinking those cans you fish out of the river, it’s not a bad idea to save them up and give them to Sam. He also likes eggs, most artisan goods, most cooking, most (non-foraged) flowers, and most gems.
Here are the best possible gifts for Sam—the items he loves:
- Cactus Fruit
- Golden Pumpkin
- Magic Rock Candy
- Pearl
- Pizza
- Prismatic Shard
- Rabbit’s Foot
- Tigerseye
Sam’s Heart Events
Most of the responses during Sam’s heart events, thankfully, have zero effect on his friendship level. There is one exception to this—his Four Heart Event.
At two hearts, enter Sam’s house while he’s there to trigger a Heart Event. At three hearts, another Event can be triggered by visiting the beach between 7am and 3pm on a day in Spring, Summer, or Fall when it’s not raining. However, the Three Heart Event can only happen in Year 1, before Sam’s father Kent returns to town.
At four hearts, enter Sam’s house while he’s there to trigger a Heart Event. He’ll make a small mistake in his house, and get into an argument with his mom. Taking the fall for him will net you +50 friendship. Blaming him will result in a loss of friendship (-10 for saying he messed up, -50 for saying he did it on purpose).
At six hearts, enter town between 12pm and 4pm for another Heart Event. At eight hearts, walk outside your house between 6am and 8am for yet another. At ten hearts, Sam will send you a letter asking you to meet him. Enter town on any day when it’s not raining, between 8pm and midnight, to trigger this event. Again, these events have no effect on Sam’s friendship level.
At fourteen hearts, if you’re married to Sam, you can trigger one more Heart Event by going inside your house while Sam is there, on any day, between 6am and 5pm. Note that this event will not trigger unless you have a house with at least two upgrades.
