Stardew Valley Skull Cavern guide: Best items to bring and best tips

Once you’ve honed your skills in the Mines and unlocked the bus to the desert in Stardew Valley, you’re going to want to take on the next mining/combat test in the Skull Cavern.

The Skull Cavern is a seemingly endless version of the Mines, with players needing to collect resources and fight enemies as they search for a way down. The Skull Cavern is where players can complete Qi’s Challenge by reaching level 25, and they can earn Calico Eggs by getting further down during the Desert Festival.

But if your first time in the Skull Cavern in Stardew Valley scared or overwhelmed you, don’t worry, because we’ve got some tips to help you out.

Best cooked food/meals to bring to the Skull Cavern

Cooked meals in Stardew Valley typically have a special effect or buff applied to players for a certain time. These meals have to be made on the stove in the kitchen of an upgraded cavern, and can only be made if you’ve learned the recipe.

• Spicy Eel is one of the best meals for the Skull Cavern, giving a Plus One increase to both Luck and Speed. The recipe is sent by George after you reach seven hearts of friendship with him. It requires just one Eel and one Hot Pepper. However, Spicy Eel can also drop from the flying Serpents you fight in the Skull Cavern, meaning you may find your next meal while mining. Spicy Eel can also be purchased from the Desert Trader for one Ruby.
• Pumpkin Soup is also a great option, providing Plus Two to Defense and Luck. Its recipe is sent by Robin after reaching seven hearts of friendship with her, requiring just one Pumpkin and one Milk.

Any recipe that provides a buff to Luck, Speed, Defense, and/or Attack is a good choice for the Skull Cavern.

Best items to bring to the Skull Cavern

Outside of the strongest weapons and armor and rings you have in your inventory, here are the items we suggest taking with you to fare better in the Skull Cavern.

• Bombs. To save on limited time in the day, or to just be more efficient, use bombs to clear big piles of stone. Additionally, bombs are the only way to kill mummies after you down them. The standard bomb only costs four Silver ore and one Coal, and you will likely pick up plenty of these while bombing floors in the Skull Cavern. Bombs will also occasionally drop from flying Serpents you kill.
• Coffee. Coffee provides a short but inexpensive boost to Speed, and it will stack on top of any Speed increases provided by a cooked meal like Spicy Eel. Coffee can be made by putting five Coffee beans in a keg, but it can also be bought from the Stardrop Saloon.
• A single Farm Warp Totem. There’s only so much time in the day, and you can cut back on travel time by using a Farm Warp Totem to instantly teleport back to the farm. Once you reach Foraging level eight, you can craft a Farm Warp Totem with Hardwood, Honey, and 20 Fiber. There’s also a Desert Warm Totem, but it costs 10 Iridium Bars just to get the recipe from the Desert Trader, and it requires twice as much Hardwood, a Coconut (which only comes from the desert), and four precious Iridium ore.

Tips and tricks for traversing the Skull Cavern

Here are some things to keep in mind when you’re in the Skull Cavern.

• Jump down shafts/holes whenever you can. The further down you go, the better chance you have at finding Iridium or completing Qi’s Challenge.
• Wrangle mummies into areas with lots of stone. Use the stone to box them in, down them, and then detonate the whole area with a bomb. Make sure you’re not too close when it goes off!
• Unless you’re looking for Solar Essence in particular, don’t waste time waiting for or fighting ghosts. They’re so slow.
• Corner Giant Slimes or back them against the wall and then spam them with melee attacks. When the Giant Slime breaks into smaller ones, this should all keep them in one tight area.
• Save Iridium, Solar Essence, and Void Essence for an Iridium Band, one of the best rings in the game.
• Don’t have Clint open your Omni Geodes; save them for trading with the Desert Trader.