Stardew Valley is so well-beloved, thanks in part to its deep lore, as well as intriguing characters and fun gameplay. The charming Pelican Town is host to a wide array of mysteries and secrets, and Stardew Valley manages to weave magical elements into the farming sim in just the right measure. The level of detail that went into the design of this game results in certain events being so rare that players may never encounter them, such as lightning strikes or the witch replacing chicken eggs with void eggs. The rarity of these events adds its own kind of magic to the game, and not all of them have easy explanations.
One such event that has had Stardew Valley fans debating its origin is the appearance of a green creature in the sea. This creature peers above the water, with only its green head and eyes visible. It appears next to Willy's dock, and the player is unable to catch it or interact in any way. There is no definite answer for what this green sea creature is, or whether its role will be expanded upon in future updates, but there are plenty of theories based on in-game knowledge as to what this thing might be. Regardless though, it's one of those special occurrences in Stardew Valley that makes the game so appealing, and find this mysterious creature depends hugely on luck.
Merfolk In Stardew Valley
The most popular theory by far is that the creature is some kind of mermaid or merman. This idea is bolstered by the fact that the Wizard makes explicit mention of merfolk at the Luau, while also mentioning their disdain for people throwing trash in the water. This led some players to believe that throwing trash in the water would help summon the creature, but it actually has no effect on whether the creature spawns or not. The merfolk, as the Wizard puts it, are curious about the player.
Of course, there are two known mermaids in Stardew Valley, one at the Night Market and one on Ginger Island. These mermaids look like more typical depictions of merfolk, as beautiful women who are half fish. The green sea creature looks nothing like these mermaids, but some have theorized this is because perhaps it is the male equivalent to the female mermaids seen in the game.
Merfolk mythology stretches across many cultures, but in some, such as Irish myth, the male merfolk are described as being less attractive than the women (hence why the mermaids seek human mates). So, there is precedent for assuming different genders take different forms when it comes to merfolk, and perhaps this creature is the same species as mermaids but hides beneath the water due to appearance.
Creature of the Deep
The other biggest theory on the green creature that appears is that it is simply some unknown entity from the deep sea that peeks above the water at Pelican Town occasionally. The game makes clear as the player progresses that their hard work is attracting attention from a variety of magical beings, and perhaps this creature is simply one of the mysterious forces the player only catches glimpses of in the world of Stardew Valley.
Since the sea creature always appears at Willy's dock, it's possible there's some connection between the two. Ultimately though, the sea creature is currently just a random occurrence right now, but it is admittedly a pretty cool one. Although the player cannot interact with the sea creature right now, that does not mean that its role in Stardew Valley won't be expanded upon in the future. As one of the rarest events in the game, players can simply enjoy catching sight of it if they're lucky enough.
Stardew Valley is out now for PC, PS4, Xbox One, Switch, and Mobile.