Getting Started
Welcome to StepHarvest! This page covers the basics: how steps work, what your first days look like, and the choices that shape your farm.
Steps are energy
Your phone's pedometer counts your steps all day, and the game banks them for you. Every in game action spends banked steps:
| Action | Base cost |
|---|---|
| Watering a crop |  50
|
| Planting a crop | varies by crop, see each crop page |
| One mining run | 200, rising with depth
|
| One fishing cast | 200
|
| One foraging trip | 200
|
Costs go down as you progress: Mastery levels, guild perks, and your farm type all reduce step costs. Balance values are tuned live, so always treat the game itself as the source of truth for current numbers.
Your first day
- Pick your farm type (see below).
- Complete the tutorial set of quests. They walk you through all the main activities and teach you the basic mechanics, so it is the best way to start.
- Walk! Your steps bank automatically, whether or not the app is open.
- Come back whenever you like to complete quests, water and harvest your crops, and try Fishing, Foraging, or Mining.
There is no single right way to play. Once the tutorial quests have shown you the ropes, you can absolutely play however you want, whether that is tending a tidy farm, chasing rare fish, or digging deep in the mines.
No punishment, ever
StepHarvest never punishes you. Crops do not die if you skip a day of watering, they simply pause. There are no timers to miss and no penalties to avoid. The game waits for you.
Picking a farm type
Your farm type gives you a permanent set of perks. All four are viable, so pick the activity you enjoy most.
| Farm type | Focus |
|---|---|
| Riverside | Fishing bonuses |
| Hilltop | Mining bonuses |
| Meadow | Cheaper watering and grid unlocks for Farming |
| Forest | Foraging bonuses |
Quality and rarity
Harvested and gathered items roll one of four quality tiers: Regular Silver Gold Pristine. Higher tiers sell for more gold.
Fish have their own rarity tiers: Common, Uncommon, Rare, and Legendary. See Fishing for details.
Seasons
The in game calendar moves through 
Spring 
Summer 
Fall 
Winter, with one in game day passing per real day. Crops, fish, and forageables are season gated, so the world keeps changing as you play. See Seasons.