What does the "Random Seed" Advanced option actually affect?

[Alucard †]

It says "Randomize game world" but the world is always the same regardless of numbers i've put in there when i tried to test this out of curiosity.

Can't even find any info about this feature online. Just the vague "Randomizes game world" and a lot of threads where people know even less about this feature than i do.

[airgid-sionnach]

If I remember correctly this effects artifact spots and such? Maybe wrong though, I just remember it mentioned somewhere. Does the wiki have anything?

[Uncoelacanth]

The Random Seed is the seed number used by the random number generator within the game to produce its sequence of random numbers. Because of how the random number generator within the game works, a specific random seed determines a large number of events, including:

- The appearance of special types of Mine and Skull Cavern floors on each day.
- What items the Traveling Cart will sell on each day.
- WHat Special Items Krobus has for sale on each day.
- What clothing Sandy has in stock
-Which Walpapers are available at Pierre's General Store and Jojamart
-What will come out of the geodes you open, depending on which types you choose to open.
- The dates and times trains will show up.
- Whether special events such as Witch Visits, Meteor Strikes, Strange Capsules, or Owl Statues will be checked for.
- Whether the Crane Game is open at the Movie Theater on a particular day
- What each garbage can will hold on a particular day
- What item enchantments are next in sequence.
- What the mine chests will hold, if you choose to have the game randomize the mine chests.
- Who will be your gift giver and gift recipeint at the winter star festival each year.

And more.

And this, effectively, is entirely set by the Random Seed Number that is generated at the beginning of your save file (or manually set by you, if you choose to do so). So, if for some reason you want multiple saves to have the exact same sequence of the above random events (such as having players have near-identical setups for some type of competition), using the same Random seed allows that to happen.

The Stardew Predictor website https://mouseypounds.github.io/stardew-predictor/ uses the random seed stored in the savefile to extract and provide information and schedules for the preeviously-mentioned events.

[Alucard †]

Ah so this is for world events and such instead actually randomizing the world itself