Stardew Valley: How To Access Dark Shrine Of Night Terrors

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How To Find The Dark Shrine Of Night Terrors In Stardew Valley

How To Activate The Dark Shrine Of Night Terrors

While it seems like a relaxing and cozy farming sim on the surface, there’s more to Stardew Valley than meets the eye. Beneath the tranquil facade of Pelican Town lurk dangerous creatures that only come out at night — slimes, bats, and mysterious shadowy figures. These monsters can attack the farmers and damage their health.

As you level up your Combat skills, these creatures grow stronger, and nighttime encounters are no longer thrilling. Interestingly, the Dark Shrine of Night Terrors can help you control the presence of these monsters on your farm. To learn how to find and activate this mysterious altar, read on.

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How To Find The Dark Shrine Of Night Terrors In Stardew Valley

A character standing in a Witch's hut in Stardew Valley

The Dark Shrine of Night Terrors can be found in the Witch’s Hut, located in the Witch’s Swamp, which needs to be unlocked first. In order to unlock the Witch’s Hut and get to the Shrine, you will need to complete a series of quests. These quests only become available once you complete the Community Center Bundles or the Joja Community Development Form.

#1 Dark Talisman Quest

After you’ve restored the Community Center or finished the Joja upgrades, you can trigger the Dark Talisman Quest by heading to the Railroad area, situated in the north, near the Mountain.

The first time you enter this area, a cutscene will trigger featuring The Wizard. The Wizard will ask you to retrieve his Magic Ink from the Witch’s house by using a Dark Talisman to gain access to her swamp.

To complete the Dark Talisman quest, you need to go speak to Krobus in the Sewers. Krobus will open the force field blocking entry into the Mutant Bug Lair, where you can find the Dark Talisman. With the talisman in hand, return to the Railroad area and place it on the artifact blocking the cave.

The following video walkthrough shows where to get the Dark Talisman in Stardew Valley:

#2 Goblin Problem Quest

Once you complete the Dark Talisman quest and enter the cave, you’ll immediately trigger the next quest in the series: Goblin Problem. Upon entering the Witch’s Swamp, you’ll encounter a Goblin Henchman blocking the path to the Witch’s Hut. Since he won’t let you pass, you cannot enter the hut to find the Wizard’s Magic Ink.

To solve this problem, you simply bribe the Goblin Henchman with a Void Mayonnaise. Doing so will unlock the Witch’s Hut, where you can retrieve the Magic Ink and bring it back to the Wizard to unlock the Wizard buildings. Completing this quest also grants you access to the three Dark Shrines, including the Dark Shrine of Night Terrors.

After completing both of these quests, players can use the cave in the Railroad area to travel to the Witch’s Swamp at any time.

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How To Activate The Dark Shrine Of Night Terrors

Inside the Witch’s Hut, you can interact with the Dark Shrine of Night Terrors (the one on the right) and use it to disable or enable monsters to spawn on your farm at night.

When starting a new save file, players can choose to have monsters spawn on their farm at night through the advanced settings. This applies to all farm layouts except the Wilderness Farm, which comes with monsters by default. If you crave more (or less) nighttime excitement later on, this Dark Shrine allows you to customize the monsters’ presence on your farm.

The Dark Shrine of Night Terrors
also works on the Wilderness Farm map
, returning your nights to tranquility.

How To Get A Strange Bun In Stardew Valley

To use the monster-toggling function of the Dark Shrine of Night Terrors, you need to make a rather peculiar offering: one Strange Bun. Thankfully, there are multiple ways to get this item:

You can cook it using the recipe gifted by Shane after reaching seven friendship hearts. The ingredients required are one Wheat Flour, one Periwinkle, and one Void Mayonnaise.
You can find it in the Stardrop Saloon’s rotating stock or inside the Garbage Can outside the Saloon.
Both Shadow Brutes and Spiders in the Mines have a 4% chance of dropping this item when killed.
It may randomly appear in Krobus’ shop on Saturdays.
It can be purchased from the Traveling Cart for 675 to 1,125 gold.
It may be randomly gifted to you by Krobus on rainy mornings (if he is your roommate).

You can change your decision as many times as you like, but will need to offer a Strange Bun each time.

Benefits Of Having Monsters Spawn On Your Farm

Unless you prefer the thrill of slaying monsters at night, there is no real benefit to having monsters spawn on your farm. The combat experience you gain from killing monsters on your farm is comparatively less than killing these creatures in their natural habitats — The Mines or Skull Cavern.

These monsters will also drop loot when defeated. However, the rates are no higher than fighting them in their usual lairs. Monster spawns can add a layer of challenge, but keeping them off at night can be a strategic choice, especially in the late game when they get more dangerous and difficult to kill.