Harvest Moon: FoMT Tools
The tools you start out with in FoMT can be upgraded six times, as can the fishing rod. There are also some important tools that you'll need to get with which you do not start. Most tool upgrades will be the job of the local blacksmith, Saibara. To be able to upgrade a tool, you'll need to have used it enough to gain experience with it, and then you'll need the corresponding type of ore for that level and some money. For more information about upgrades and their prices, see the "shops" page. To use the upgraded function of a tool, hold down the "B" button to charge it up to the appropriate level.
The seven levels for tools are normal, copper, silver, gold, mystrile, cursed, blessed, and mythic. They do not need to be upgraded in order, providing you've gained enough experience with a tool to upgrade it further. This means you can go straight from having a normal axe to a gold axe, if you've used it enough and have the gold ore and enough money. The original tools are upgraded as far as mystrile, and then the upgrades become more obscure. The cursed tools must be dug up with the hoe on various levels of the winter (lake) mine, and can only be found once every tool you own has been upgraded to the mystrile level. The cursed tools are very powerful but use up far too much energy, and their main downside is that once a cursed tool is equipped, it cannot be unequipped (so you cannot use another tool at all) until you go to Carter at the church and ask him to remove it for you in the confessional. For this reason, it's best not to use the cursed tools at all until they have been upgraded to the blessed level, which is achieved by several different methods. Once all the tools are upgraded to blessed, you can then upgrade either the blessed tool or your original mystrile tool to the mythic level through Saibara the blacksmith. You'll need to find some mythic stones, which will appear (after you have all the blessed tools) on level 60 of the spring mine. The mythic tools are the most powerful tools in the game and each have an amazing effect when used, while somewhat conservative on the energy usage.
Hammer - The hammer is used to break rocks on your farm and in the mine and to break broken fences. You can also use it to turn tilled soil back into regular soil. The regular hammer is not very helpful, since it cannot break big stones at all.
The cursed hammer is found on level 59 in the winter mine and is upgraded to the blessed level by having it equipped for 11 days straight. During this time, you cannot use any other tools, so you should get the sprites to take care of your animals. Winter is a good time to do this since you won't have to worry about planting crops. The mythic hammer smashes all stones and boulders on the current screen in only one hit - even those you cannot currently see, but have already been loaded in that area.
The following table shows the different levels of the hammer and how many hits it takes to break each type of rock.
| Level |
Big Stone |
Boulder |
Large Boulder |
| Normal |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
| Copper |
3 hits |
N/A |
N/A |
| Silver |
2 hits |
6 hits |
N/A |
| Gold |
1 hit |
3 hits |
N/A |
| Mystrile |
1 hit |
2 hits |
N/A |
| Blessed |
1 hit |
1 hit |
1 hit |
| Mythic |
1 hit |
1 hit |
1 hit |
Axe - The axe is used to chop lumber for fences or upgrades. You can chop stumps and branches you find in your field when you start out and those found on the mountain later in the game. The original axe cannot chop the stumps found on your farm, so you'll need to get it upgraded.
The cursed axe is found on level 49 in the winter mine and is upgraded to the blessed level by using it 255 times. This may sound difficult but it's really quite easy if done at the right time, which is during a festival of any kind. At festivals, the clock disappears - time stops and fatigue/stamina are no longer taken into account, so you can use the tool as much as you want without getting tired. The mythic axe chops all tree stumps on the current screen in only one hit - even those you cannot currently see, but have already been loaded in that area. The cursed/blessed axes also do this, but the mythic version does it while using half as much energy.
The following table shows the different levels of the axe and how many hits it takes to break stumps. All levels can break branches in only one hit.
| Level |
Stump Hits |
| Normal |
N/A |
| Copper |
6 hits |
| Silver |
3 hits |
| Gold |
2 hits |
| Mystrile |
1 hit |
Watering Can - One of your most important tools, you'll need this to keep your crops alive. Grass doesn't need to be watered, but you'll need to water your crops once a day. This can be quite difficult once you've planted a lot if you do not upgrade your watering can. In addition, lower-level watering cans hold less water, so you'll need to stop off at the pond or the river more often to refill while watering. Once you start getting the Harvest Sprites to help you water this tool becomes less important.
The cursed watering can is found on level 69 in the winter mine and is upgraded to the blessed level by having Carter bless it 11 times. Each blessing costs 1000 G, but this is the easiest method of removing the curse from a tool, since you can get it blessed 11 times straight in one day.
The following table shows the different amounts of squares watered in one swing of the watering can when at different levels.
| Level |
Squares Watered |
| Normal |
1 |
| Copper |
1x3 |
| Silver |
2x3 |
| Gold |
3x3 |
| Mystrile |
3x5 |
| Blessed |
6x13 |
| Mythic |
12x21 |
Sickle - Use the sickle to cut fully-grown grass for fodder for your cows and sheep when they're inside, or to cut pesky weeds that grow on your farm. Any grass you cut will be automatically stored, but cutting weeds does not make fodder. Once you start getting large fields of grass it can be tiring to have to swing that sickle so much, so upgrading makes harvesting that grass much quicker.
The cursed sickle is found on level 79 in the winter mine and is upgraded to the blessed level by having it equipped for 11 days straight, just like the hammer. Again, the best time to do this is during Winter when you don't have as much to do, and when you can have the sprites take care of your animals. The mythic sickle cuts a massive amount of grass in one swing.
The following table shows the different amounts of squares cut in one swing of the sickle when at different levels.
| Level |
Squares Cut |
| Normal |
1 |
| Copper |
1x3 |
| Silver |
2x3 |
| Gold |
3x3 |
| Mystrile |
5x5 |
| Blessed |
9x9 |
| Mythic |
15x15 |
Hoe - The hoe is used to till the soil before planting crops and for digging in the mines for stairs and items. Once you start planting a lot of crops it can take forever in Spring to prepare your field after the winter snow covers your field, so you should upgrade to be able to till more soil at once. Upgrading your hoe has no effect on your mining, however.
The cursed hoe is found on level 39 in the winter mine and is upgraded to the blessed level by having Carter bless it 11 times. It costs 1000 G each time but all the blessings can be done in one day. The mythic hoe tills a massive strip of land per swing.
The following table shows the different amounts of squares tilled by the hoe when at different levels.
| Level |
Squares Tilled |
| Normal |
1 |
| Copper |
2x1 |
| Silver |
3x1 |
| Gold |
4x1 |
| Mystrile |
6x1 |
| Blessed |
12x3 |
| Mythic |
18x5 |
Fishing Rod - The fishing rod is the only tool with which you do not start which can be upgraded based on experience as the previously mentioned tools could. You can get the fishing rod from Zack by entering his house with an open spot in the tools section of your rucksack. There are different fish to catch based on season, location, and fishing rod level. Small fish aren't worth much but large fish bring a good profit, so upgrading to a gold fishing rod as soon as possible is advisable.
The cursed fishing rod is found on level 29 in the winter mine and is upgraded to the blessed level by using it 255 times. The best time to do this is during a festival when stamina/fatigue don't count - you don't have to be casting into water for the usage to count. The mythic fishing rod catches large fish and special king fish, and can catch pirate treasures (which sell for 10000 G apiece) during Summer and ancient fossils (which sell for 5000 G apiece) during Fall, when fishing in the ocean. The cursed/blessed rods can also catch pirate treasures and ancient fossils.
The following table shows the kinds of fish that are most commonly caught by each level of the fishing rod, as well as the special items that can each be caught only one time apiece with at least that level of fishing rod.
| Level |
Fish Caught |
Special Items |
| Normal |
Small |
N/A |
| Copper |
Small, Medium |
N/A |
| Silver |
Small, Medium |
N/A |
| Gold |
Medium, Large |
N/A |
| Mystrile |
Large |
Power Berry in Winter, Recipe in Spring |
| Blessed |
12x3 |
King Fish |
| Mythic |
18x5 |
Increased likelihood of valuable items |
Basket - This item is available for purchase from the supermarket from the beginning of the game. The basket acts as a means of temporary storage and transportation to the shipping bin. Place items in the basket just as you would with a shipping bin, and just as with a shipping bin as soon as you place an item in the basket it cannot be removed. It can hold 30 items and is useful especially when harvesting large amounts of crops and when mining. Once you've filled up the basket, just carry it to the shipping bin and press "B" to dump the basket into the bin. It's important to remember that items placed in the basket are not automatically shipped as items in the shipping bin are.
Bell - Buy this from the Yodel Ranch. It is used to call your cows and sheep, but they won't pay much attention to it if they don't love you very much. It's very useful for bringing in your animals if the weather's going to be bad the next day.
Brush - Purchase the brush from Saibara the blacksmith and use it to brush your cows, sheep, and horse. The brush greatly improves the animals' affection toward you, but is only useful once a day. Click here for brush image.
Scissors - These can be purchased from Saibara. Use them to shear the fully-grown wool off of your sheep. Sheep can be sheared once a week, but be sure not to shear them within a week of the sheep festival.
Milker - This is also sold by Saibara. It's very important because without it your cow investment is worthless. Use it when near an adult cow to milk her, but keep in mind that you cannot milk a cow that is young or pregnant.
Cheese Maker - Saibara will build the cheese maker for you and place it in your barn. It's only available for purchase after you've upgraded your barn, however. Just place milk in it and out pops the cheese, which sells for far more and can be used in recipes.
Mayonnaise Maker - Also sold by Saibara, the mayonnaise maker is only available after you've upgraded your chicken coop. Just place eggs in it and mayonnaise is made which sells for more than regular eggs.
Yarn Maker - Saibara can also make the yarn maker for you after you've upgraded your barn. Wool placed in the yarn maker will automatically be converted to yarn which sells for more than wool. It is also necessary to get this and make some yarn if you want to get a sock knitted by Ellen for the stocking festival (see the "Events" page).
Dog Ball - The dog ball can be bought from Won once your puppy grows up in your first Fall. Throwing the ball for your dog increases his affection, which can help him chase off stray dogs to protect your animals. You can throw the ball for your dog anywhere at any time but be careful not to throw it to a place you cannot reach, or into the water. If you do, however, Won will sell another ball immediately, so don't panic.
Frisbee - Buy the Frisbee from Won once your dog is an adult. You can only throw it for your dog by looking at the sign on the beach between 6 AM and 5 PM any season but Winter. The Frisbee trains your dog for the Summer Frisbee contest, which will award you a Power Berry the first time you win. When you play Frisbee with your dog, he can also stop and dig up random items. These items can be valuable or just garbage. The more you play with him, the greater distance he'll be able to cover to catch the Frisbee, and the greater chance he'll dig something up.
Pedometer - You'll start with this in your tool box. The pedometer keeps track of how many steps you've taken, but it's only useful for information purposes. It doesn't have to be the equipped tool to be able to track your steps - it only has to be in your rucksack.
Gem of Truth - Collect all nine truth jewels to form the Gem of Truth, but make sure you've got an empty space in the tools section of your rucksack before you find the last jewel. This tool will show you your current stamina and fatigue, but it will not recover them.
Gem of the Goddess - Collect all nine Goddess jewels from the spring mine to form this tool. It will recover your stamina when equipped over time, and after one full hour your stamina will be completely restored.
Gem of the Kappa - Collect all nine Kappa jewels to form this tool. The Kappa Gem will remove your fatigue when equipped over time, and after one full hour you will have no more fatigue.
Animal Medicine - You can buy animal medicine from the Poultry Farm or the Yodel Ranch. Use it on sick animals to make them healthy again. Animals can become sick if you don't feed them or if there's a hurricane or snowstorm and you can't feed them. Animals will also randomly become unhappy and can get sick when the Harvest Sprites are taking care of them, so be careful to check their status. This won't happen as often once the sprites get more proficient at taking care of your animals, however. You can store up to 99 animal medicines in each space of your tool box, so you should always keep quite a few on hand just in case something goes wrong and the shops aren't open.
Teleport Stone - This tool is found at the bottom level (level 255) of the spring mine beginning on Spring 1st of your third year. Make sure you've got an open spot in the tools section of your rucksack for it, though, or that long trip will be for nothing. The teleport stone is incredibly useful and saves you a lot of time. It allows you to instantly "teleport" to any location on the map that has a text description, but it will only put you at a building's door or at the entrance to an area. It's also useful because it can allow you to go to the winter mine during any season, but it cannot take you to certain levels of the mine. Click here for an image of the teleport stone.
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