You need 12 points for all four candles at Grandpa’s Shrine. The first evaluation happens at dawn on Year 3 and scores progress from your first two years, but you do not need every milestone: there are 21 points available, and a Diamond lets you request another evaluation if you fall short.
How many points does each candle require?
The shrine awards one to four candles according to your evaluation score:
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| Score | Candles |
|---|---|
| 0–3 points | One candle |
| 4–7 points | Two candles |
| 8–11 points | Three candles |
| 12 or more points | Four candles |
The evaluation draws on a pool of 21 possible points. These are game-mechanics figures documented on the Stardew Valley Wiki’s Grandpa page.
What earns evaluation points?
The detailed milestone list below follows the Wiki’s separate entries for Community Center completion and its ceremony, and its stated friendship thresholds.
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| Milestone | Points | How it counts |
|---|---|---|
| Earn 50,000g total | 1 | Earnings milestones accumulate; reaching 1,000,000g earns seven points across the earnings category. |
| Earn 100,000g total | 1 | |
| Earn 200,000g total | 1 | |
| Earn 300,000g total | 1 | |
| Earn 500,000g total | 1 | |
| Earn 1,000,000g total | 2 | |
| Reach 30 total skill levels | 1 | Levels across the five skills count toward the total. |
| Reach 50 total skill levels | 1 | This is level 10 in all five skills. |
| Complete the museum collection (“A Complete Collection”) | 1 | Achievement milestone. |
| Catch every fish (“Master Angler”) | 1 | Achievement milestone. |
| Ship every item (“Full Shipment”) | 1 | Achievement milestone. |
| Marry and upgrade the farmhouse twice | 1 | The kitchen and nursery upgrades are sufficient; the cellar is not required. |
| Reach the friendship threshold with at least five villagers | 1 | Wiki describes this as at least eight hearts; see the threshold nuance below. |
| Reach the friendship threshold with at least ten villagers | 1 | Uses the same friendship threshold. |
| Reach approximately five hearts with your pet | 1 | The Wiki specifies 999 of 1,000 relationship points. |
| Complete the Community Center | 1 | Separate from the ceremony milestone. |
| See the Community Center completion ceremony | 2 | Together, center completion and ceremony award three points. |
| Obtain the Skull Key | 1 | |
| Obtain the Rusty Key | 1 |
The Community Center completion and ceremony are distinct milestones, so completing both awards three points in total. Choosing the Joja Warehouse prevents earning those Community Center and ceremony points, according to the Wiki’s evaluation details.
How to plan for four candles
There is no single required route to 12 points. Choose milestones that suit your save and progress; several categories can be completed after the first evaluation.
Rank #2
- Create the farm of your dreams: build your farm from the ground up on 1 of 5 map layouts suited to your play style!
- mmaster your branching skills: raise animals, grow crops, start an orchard and build useful machines!
- become a part of the local community: get to know all 30+ residents of Pelican town!
- customize your farmer: there are hundreds of character customization options to choose from!
- settle down and start a family: share life on the farm with 1 of 12 characters you can date and marry, and even have children with!.explore vast, mysterious caves! Encounter dangerous monsters and valuable treasures!.spend a relaxing afternoon at one of the local fishing spots: the waters are teeming with seasonal varieties of delicious fish. Craft bait, bobbers, and crab pots to help you in your journey toward catching every fish and becoming a local Legend!.
- Check cumulative progress first. Earnings and total skill levels each have multiple thresholds, while keys and relationships are separate opportunities.
- Count the Community Center route accurately. Completing the center and seeing its ceremony together provide three points; neither is the same milestone as the other.
- Treat completion achievements as options, not requirements. The museum collection, all fish, and full shipment each provide a point, but none is individually necessary for four candles.
- Use your own save to judge effort. Which milestones are quickest depends on what you have already completed; no one route is universally fastest.
What the friendship thresholds mean
The Wiki documents the villager check as 1,975 relationship points, just below the visible eight-heart level of 2,000. The pet requirement is listed as 999 out of 1,000 points, approximately five hearts. These precise values are not shown as an in-game progress meter; the villager relationship value can be inspected in a save file. See the Grandpa page for the stated mechanics.
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You can ask Grandpa to evaluate the farm again by placing a Diamond in the shrine. The Grandpa page describes the repeat evaluation as occurring the following day, after a game load, or sometimes on the first day of the next season. Continue completing milestones, then use another Diamond to request a fresh evaluation.
How to claim the Statue of Perfection
- Reach 12 points or more. The shrine must display all four candles.
- Interact with Grandpa’s Shrine. The Wiki says the game does not explicitly notify you that the reward is ready.
- Collect the Statue of Perfection. It produces 2–8 Iridium Ore per day, according to the Statue of Perfection page.
When does Grandpa evaluate the farm?
The first evaluation occurs at dawn at the start of Year 3 and reflects milestones from the first two years. Grandpa’s shrine note says, “Wait for my return at the dawn of the 3rd year.” The Farm page documents the note and evaluation timing. The Wiki pages accessed on October 4, 2026, do not specify the exact live game build against which every mechanic was verified.
Quick Recap
Best Value
Rank #4
- You’ve inherited your grandfather’s old farm plot in Stardew Valley. Armed with hand-me-down tools and a few coins, you set out to begin your new life.
- Now with Multiplayer! Invite 1-3 players to join you in the valley! Players can work together to build a thriving farm, share resources, and build relationships with townspeople or each other.
- New Single Player Content! Including the new Winter Market Festival, more collectibles, added character cut-scenes and even hats for your horse!
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