The oceans and rivers of Stardew Valley might be some of the most wild and confusing parts of the map. Unlike most of the other methods of gathering materials currently live in the game, you are reliant on random chance and the good fortune of the television to get what you need. And some fish are incredibly hard to find for no good reason. The Octopus of Stardew Valley is one of the rarest fish in the game. Finding it in the first place can be difficult, but catching it is an entirely different story. Let’s go over the properties of the Octopus so you can know why you want to catch it, where to find it, and what it is useful for.
Octopus Locations in Stardew Valley
The Octopus of Stardew Valley is located on the beach of the Valley, by the docks, during the Summer time. You can also catch it on Ginger Island’s beaches, specifically on the western shore, during any season you want. If you have a Beach Farm, it counts as a beach for catching an octopus in the summer. You can also find it in garbage cans, on the Traveling Cart, or during a submarine ride at the Night Market in the Winter.
While Ginger Beach West is the best area to farm Octopuses in any season, you can’t get there early on in your farming career. So instead, you’ll have to hit the beach. During the Summer Season, you can find the cephalopods rarely during the 6 a.m. to 12 p.m. range. When we say rare, we mean it! Come to the Beach with your best fishing gear, an Iridium Rod, and eating fishing buff foods. This little fella puts up a gigantic fight, and has an insanely low chance to spawn in the first place. You don’t want to lose this!
The Beach Farm is a valid place to get standard ocean fish. However, you are slightly more likely to get trash, coral, mussel, cockles, oysters, or seaweed instead. As such, if you want consistent access to the rare fish, we recommend hitting the standard beach anyways.
Ginger Island’s West Beach is good for catching octopuses in any season. Like on the beach, you can find the fish from 6-12 in the morning. However, your chance to find the octopus instead of another fish is significantly higher on the island. Not high, but higher.
Finding the creature is the first hurdle, but catching it is another. This is an immensely hard fish to catch once it is on your hook. Before farming this catch, try to reach a high fishing level. You’ll also want to attach a Trap Bobber or Cork Bobber to your pole. These steps won’t guarantee that you catch the bugger, but it will make the tight timing window significantly easier.
Octopus Recipes and Crafting Uses
As expected, the Octopus is a part of any recipe that asks the player for any Fish. This includes the Maki Roll, Quality Fertilizer, and Sashimi recipes. It is also an option for the Master Fisher’s Bundle and can be used to make a dyeable Blue Buttoned Vest. However, it is not used in any other recipes or any food recipe that requires it.
This is a little bit strange. The cephalopod is one of the hardest fish in the game to catch, right behind the Legendary Fish in difficulty. The fact that you can only turn it into the generic fish recipes is, frankly, mind-boggling. While Quality Fertilizer is fine, any other fish would work just as well. Maki Roll technically bumps up the price of a no-star Octopus, but only by a small margin.
The Master Fisher’s Bundle has two slots that you need to fill, and the Octopus is a good option for it. Your other options are the Lava Eel, Scorpion Carp, or Blobfish. The Octopus and Scorpion Carp are the only ones available on the overworld. The Lava Eel and Blobfish require a lot more effort. Our Cephalopod fills the role well here.
Finally, you can make a nice vest out of an octopus. We won’t fill in the details of why or how you can turn an eight-armed fish into a vest. All we know is that it is stylish and functional on a character.
Perhaps the best way to use an octopus is to put it, with a partner, in a fish pond. It’ll take some time to grow it, since it actually needs fairly rare materials. Once you reach population 9, you get a fairly unique item – the Omni Geode. While this isn’t the most difficult item to find, octopuses are the only fish that can produce it just from a pond. So, if you want extra materials, you could do worse!
Which Villagers Like Octopus?
The only villager that loves a gift of an Octopus is Willy. Elliot likes octopuses and will getting it will improve your relationship with him somewhat. Everyone else on the island is either neutral or dislikes the cephalopod, with Evelyn, Haley, Pam, and Pierre all hating the creatures.
Willy is your main target for these tentacle-having creatures. He loves them, but they aren’t the only thing he loves. He also loves Mead, Diamonds, Iridium, Pumpkins, Sea Cucumbers, Sturgeons, and Catfish. The Octopus is more difficult to catch than any fish on his list, and a lot of the other materials are fairly easy to grow or mine. While this is far from the worst use for an octopus, you might be better off farming something like a Catfish.
Elliot does like Octopuses, and this is actually more interesting. He also likes Squid, a winter fish from the Beach, as well as a variety of fruits and universal likes. This means that, if you can’t find anything that Elliot loves, these eight-armed water-dwellers are a fairly efficient way into the man’s heart. Though, crab cakes and lobster would definitely be faster.
