What is Hardwood Used for in Animal Crossing? A Comprehensive Guide
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In Animal Crossing: New Horizons, hardwood is a fundamental resource, essential for crafting a wide array of items, building infrastructure, and customizing your island. From basic tools that allow you to further explore your island to elaborate furniture for your dream home, hardwood plays a crucial role in your island life. To put it simply, hardwood is primarily used as a crafting material. It is one of three types of wood you can obtain by hitting trees with an axe, the others being wood and softwood, each having distinct uses and significance in the game’s economy and progression. Understanding how to acquire hardwood, its various uses, and its place within the island’s ecosystem is key to becoming a successful island representative.
The Importance of Hardwood
Hardwood, along with wood and softwood, form the backbone of nearly all early and mid-game crafting recipes. You will need it to craft your first set of basic tools, upgrade these tools to sturdier versions, build furniture to decorate your house and island, and contribute to larger-scale projects. The ability to efficiently gather, conserve, and utilize hardwood impacts every aspect of your island’s development, from your own personal setup to the overall rating of your island. Furthermore, since it’s a finite resource obtained from trees, understanding the mechanics surrounding its collection becomes crucial to making the most of your island resources.
How to Obtain Hardwood
To get hardwood, you must strike hardwood trees with an axe. However, you can only acquire this resource by using a standard or better axe, which means initially, you’ll need to create a Flimsy Axe before you can craft a standard Axe. Flimsy Axes can only be crafted using five tree branches and one stone. Once you have your axe, aim for hardwood trees, and strike them repeatedly to obtain hardwood, wood, and softwood alongside the occasional tree branch drop. Note that every tree you hit will randomly generate either hardwood, wood, or softwood. The tree’s appearance does not determine what kind of wood will drop. Each tree can be hit three times before no more resources drop from it.
Utilizing Hardwood in Crafting
Hardwood is vital for crafting numerous essential and decorative items. Here are some of the most commonly used items crafted with hardwood:
- Tools: As mentioned earlier, it’s needed for crafting axes, and it forms part of many tool upgrade recipes.
- Furniture: Many basic furniture recipes, including tables, chairs, and beds, require hardwood. This allows you to customize your living space and personalize your island according to your taste.
- Construction Materials: When you begin to build bigger structures on your island, hardwood can form part of the recipe.
- Specialty Items: Hardwood is a crucial ingredient in crafting special items like a Decayed Tree, which requires 10 hardwood to make. This is obtained from smug villagers.
- DIY Projects: Hardwood is needed for a huge selection of DIY recipes, expanding your creativity.
The diversity in the use of hardwood makes it an essential ingredient in your journey through Animal Crossing. Without a steady supply of hardwood, you could find your progress significantly stalled.
The Sustainability of Hardwood Resources
Unlike some other resources, trees will not regenerate after being cut down in Animal Crossing: New Horizons. Instead, they remain as a stump until you dig it up with a shovel. Digging up the stump will return a bit of wood but this only provides a limited resource. Therefore, you must manage your hardwood collection carefully. It is wise to balance cutting down trees with planting new ones to maintain the ecosystem of your island. You can plant new trees by burying fruit. Since trees do contribute to your island rating, consider the number of trees carefully as you work on improving your island. Remember that trees are necessary to improve your island’s score, and they provide fruit, bells, and even random furniture at times. Additionally, certain bugs only appear on trees and stumps.
Tips for Efficient Hardwood Management
- Strategic Tree Placement: Plant trees in areas where you can easily access them for wood collection without disrupting your island’s design.
- Regular Harvesting: Make collecting wood a part of your daily routine, and don’t forget to shake the trees first to collect fruit, potential bells, and items.
- Balanced Cutting and Planting: Do not cut down too many trees all at once. Always plan to replace at least as many as you cut down, and ideally, plant one more than you cut down.
- Conservation: Avoid selling hardwood if you can, unless you have an extreme abundance of it. It is usually best to reserve this for crafting.
- Island Rating: Be sure to keep an eye on the number of trees on your island, and try to aim for at least 190 and no more than 220. Remember that bushes and bamboo also count toward your tree total. Too few or too many trees will lower your rating.
By following these tips, you can ensure a consistent supply of hardwood while preserving the beauty and functionality of your island.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. Can I get hardwood from any tree?
No. Hardwood, wood, and softwood drop from hardwood trees when hit with an axe. Which of the three types of wood is given is completely random and does not depend on the tree’s visual appearance.
2. Do cut-down trees grow back in Animal Crossing?
No, trees that are cut down do not grow back. They will remain as stumps unless you dig them up with a shovel.
3. Is there a way to speed up tree growth?
No, there is no way to speed up tree growth. Just bury a fruit and wait for it to grow. There’s no need to water the tree.
4. What’s the difference between hardwood, wood, and softwood?
These are the three types of wood obtainable from hardwood trees and each serves as a crafting material for different types of items.
5. What happens if I shake a tree too much?
You won’t be able to get any more items out of the tree once they’ve all been shaken loose. Once shaken dry, hitting the tree will yield wood and branches.
6. How many times can you hit a tree in Animal Crossing?
Each tree will produce materials three times before ceasing to give you resources for the day.
7. Can I sell hardwood?
Yes, you can sell hardwood, but it is generally not recommended unless you have a surplus, as it is essential for crafting.
8. What happens if I cut down too many trees?
Cutting down too many trees can negatively impact your island’s rating and your villagers may be more likely to move away.
9. How many trees should I ideally have on my island?
Ideally, aim for between 190 and 220 trees on your island to maximize your island’s rating. Note that bushes and bamboo also count as trees toward this total.
10. What is the highest amount of money a money tree can generate?
The maximum amount of Bells a money tree can produce is 90,000. Burying more than 90,000 Bells will not generate more money.
11. What is the most profitable item to craft?
The Trophy Case and Street Piano are considered some of the most valuable crafted items. The Trophy Case requires hardwood, iron nuggets, and gold nuggets.
12. How do I find a “Decayed Tree” recipe?
The “Decayed Tree” recipe can be obtained from smug villagers when they are crafting in their home, or through a message bottle found on the beach.
13. What is the brown thing hanging from the tree?
The brown thing hanging from the tree is a Bagworm. It can be shaken out of hardwood or cedar trees.
14. How do I get a 5-star island?
To get a 5-star island, you need at least eight villagers, 665 points in development, and 450 points in scenery. Having an appropriate number of trees, furniture, flowers, and fences also helps. Be sure to pick up weeds and branches to improve your island’s rating.
15. Is it bad if it rains in Animal Crossing?
No, rain is not bad. In fact, rain is a normal weather pattern. March and April are spring months with moderate rainfall, while May and June make up the rainy season. The dry season occurs from July to September. Rain is also beneficial for catching certain species of fish.
By understanding the importance and uses of hardwood and the best practices for managing it, you will be well on your way to creating your own unique and thriving island in Animal Crossing: New Horizons.