Journey of the Prairie King Guide

This guide will attempt to teach the reader how to successfully complete the minigame within Stardew Valley known as "The Journey of the Prairie King".

Welcome to Journey of the Prairie King

Welcome to The Journey of the Prairie King!

No doubt you've probably noticed the arcade machine sitting in the corner of Gus's Saloon, and decided to play it, finding out it was terribly, horribly, HARD.

For those who don't know where this game is, it looks like this machine in the Saloon in town.


This guide is dedicated to helping out when it comes to shootin' those darn enemies and formulating a strategy to dodge and complete the game.

Lets begin!

Basic Controls and Items

Basic Control Movements are as follows:

The Up, Down, Left and Right Keys fire your gun.

Pressing a combination of the Keys will fire diagonally.

The W, A, S and D keys move your character.

The Spacebar activates your items.

The Following items you can obtain in game are as follows:


1 Coin - Adds one coin to your coin total


5 Coin - Adds a whopping 5 coins to your coin total



Coffee - Temporarily speeds up your character



Shotgun - Gives your character 3 way shot



Ammo Sash - Gives your character rapidfire



Wagon Wheel - Gives your character multidirectional spreadshot



Sheriff's Star - Gives your character rapidfire, 3 way spread shot and a speed boost



Ninja-Box - Ninja Teleports your character and makes him invisible to enemies, confusing them for a short while



Power Tablet - Transforms your character into a powerful undead that will kill enemies via contact damage and make them run away. (Bullet damage can still harm you)



Skull-Nuke - Kills all enemies in the area (Has a chance to lower your drop-rate for other items)



1-Up - Gives you another life


All items except for coins are temporary and end at different intervals.

If your character has already picked up an item in storage and picks up another item, he'll immediately use the new item.

This can be used to create powerful combinations in different situations, such as Wagon Wheel + Sheriff's Star = Quick Screen covering shot.

Stage 1, Area 1

Welcome to the first stage.




This is the very first stage you'll be facing when you first start the game.

You'll notice that there are four pathways on either side of you- these are where the enemies will spawn from.

The first enemies you'll encouter are the Desert Lizardmen.

They're your basic enemies- one shot and they're dead, although they can do the same to you.

This area has no particular quirks, and all areas doesn't pose much of a threat as long as you keep these things in mind:

• Try to stick to the middle, This gives you as much movement and firing options possible
  
• Do NOT move into the corners. The corners will most often end up making you lose a life due to the ganging mentality of the monsters
  
• Keep a moderate distance from the spawn areas- These can sometimes kill you if you come into contact with them as an enemy can spawn there, so if you do get close, keep shooting in that general direction.
  
• Try to save items like the power-tablet to get out of tight spots.
  
• Collect as MUCH money as possible. you'll need it.

Keep shooting untill the timer runs out, and you'll be free to proceed into the next area.

Stage 1, Area 2

Now that we've made it to the second area, things are about to get a bit more interesting.


The area now includes a few barricades in the corners.

Just stick to the middle as you've been doing with the last area, and you shouldn't run into any problems- If you absolutely have to grab a coin or something, make sure you have an item like the shotgun in reserve to clear out the inevitable gang-up.

After you finish this stage, you'll recieve a visit from your friendly traveling merchant



She sells useful permanent upgrades as listed:

• Boots - Increase Speed
  
• Gun - Increase Fire Rate
  
• Ammo - Increase Firepower

If you have enough money, you should buy the ammo box first.

If not, buy whatever upgrade is available to you at the moment, then press on.

Stage 1, Area 3

You're halfway there


This stage puts the barricades infront of the spawn areas, causing the mooks to have a bit of cover from your fire- This will cause some back up and begin to develop your moment skills as the constant influx of enemies will make you move.

We also see the introduction of a new enemy here as well:


The Lizardman Spikehead is stronger and faster than the usual lizardmen, but do not try to follow you.

Instead, they try to find areas where they can create a blockade by turning into their secondary form:



In their spikeblock form, they take a little more damage than usual, and also prove to be a nusance by lessening the area in which you can move. if anything, they tend to clump around the outside of the barricades, so they don't pose much of a threat to you- so they should be ignored.

Continue to shoot until the timer runs out, then proceed into the next to last area for Stage 1.

Stage 1, Area 4

Area 4 is a very interesting stage because of it's setup.


You'll immediately notice that you're surrounded by a barricade that forces enemies in via chokepoints on all four sides.

Take advantage of these chokepoints by staying inside the fort and throttling enemy entry by keeping your eyes peeled and shooting any that come to close.

Exiting the fort may cause a pileup of enemies inside the fort, so be aware that ducking in and out quickly is the best way to grab items or coins.

We also see another new enemy introduction here as well:


The Lizard Demon Is slow moving, but takes up a few more shots than usual- not a high priority threat to any player.

We also see the introduction of a friendly character as well:


The happy gopher is more than willing to give you a helping hand!
He'll kill enemies he comes into contact wilh, running around the screen once and distracting all enemies, making them run towards him.

All three enemy types are present in this area, and will do their best to kill you.

Once this area is done, you'll get another visit from the merchant.



If you've got the money, buy the gun upgrade as you'll need the weapon speed.

Alternatively, you can buy the ammo upgrade if you have that much money.

After that, proceed into the first boss fight ahead.

Stage 1 Boss

Another Cowboy! Presumably evil by his glaringly dark color palette.


By no means is this a tough boss fight if you know how to handle your movement.

The cowboy at the bottom of the screen will usually always return to his hiding positon after proceeding to take these actions:

• Run left and fire constantly, then run right and fire, then stop out in the open
  
• Run Right and fire constantly, then run left and fire, then stop out in the open
  
• Follow your movements and constantly fire
  
• Peek out of a corner and fire constantly

All there is to this fight is to dodge his bullets and chip away at his health bar until he's dead.

If you've gotten any upgrades, this fight will be considerably easier.

Also, if you've collected a Ninja-Box, it might have a chance of completely removing any difficulty of this fight by teleporting you across the lake- The enemy can't fire sideways or behind himself!



After defeating the cowboy, a 1-UP and a branch will appear.

Take the 1-UP and your friendly gopher following will take you to the next stage.

Stage 2, Area 1

You've made it! Unfortunately, Things will immediately get harder from here on out.


The first forest stage is pretty much a carbon copy of the very first stage- the only notable difference is the enemies you'll be facing.

Other than the lizard Demon, we see the introduction of two new enemies:


The Rush-Room is a formidable opponent that has a high speed and will barrel towards you.

If you haven't taken your first ammo upgrade, this enemy will be harder to defeat- if you did take the ammo upgrade, they'll die in one hit.


Poison Moths come flying in from all directions- they'll home in on you slower than a rush-room, but faster than a demon-lizard- they also tend to come in from diagonal directions.

Stage 2 overall has a tendancy to give you alot of 1-UPs if you do well.

Keep quick on your feet and you'll recieve another visit from the merchant.


At this point, you probably won't have enough for the second ammo upgrade, so take either the gun or the boot upgrade. if you do, then scoop up that ammo upgrade and proceed to the next area.

Stage 2, Area 2

Area 2 brings a few displaced trees into the equation, fueling the need for better tactical movement.


No new enemies are faced here, but the tree locations need to be noted right away.

The best chokepoint for enemy avoidance is directly to your left, as many rush-rooms will get stuck trying to mannuver around the stump.

Other than that, there's not much else to mention here.

Kill em all until the timer ends and move on.

Stage 2, Area 3

One of the most unique areas comes into play here with lots of strategic movement value.


The 3 bridges you see will serve as chokepoints for any forces coming from the upper or lower levels- it's reccomended that you stay in the middle and move up or down as needed, only to recover in the middle when possible.

many rush-rooms will get plugged up trying to go across the bridges and around the lake, and so will the demon lizards. So the only real issue are the side-spawns and the Poison moths.

The cheerful gopher will also make a return in this area for a bit as well.

Multishot items are useful here as they can easily clear out the area.

As per usual, the merchant will return again at the end.


You WILL need the ammo upgrade at this point- buy it if you can, otherwise save your money.

Proceed into the next part.

Stage 2 Boss

Another Bad guy!


Just like the desert Cowboy, this guy will fight you in the exact same way.

The only difference is that he'll tend to fire at more of an angle- he'll also have more health if you didn't get the bullet upgrade.

The Same thing applies when it comes to using the Ninja-box.

Snuff him and then collect the skull to move onto the last Stage.

Hopefully you brought enough lives and got the ammo upgrade- you'll need it.

Stage 3, Area 1

Welcome to the graveyard, and your own personal hell.


This stage has a bunch of tombstones to cut off your movement- try not to move between the tombstones, as they'll tend to get you killed easily.

we encounter the last two enemies seen in the game here.


The Shambling Mummy is a slow enemy that takes alot of bullets to kill- if your ammo isn't tier three already, it'll take alot of shots to kill one- not an ideal situation.


Flying Demons will also assault you from all angles of the stage, swooping in at a fast rate.

If you get an item here, use it. Items and Fancy footwork are your only saving graces in this stage.


After finishing this area, you'll recieve another visit from the merchant- you'll more than likely not have enough to purchase the high tier upgrades, so grab the boots. you'll need them, too.

Stage 3, Area 2

This stage gets even harder with the tombstone placements- it also has mass Shambling Mummy spawn rates, so make sure you use any and all items found within.


The four tombstones found in the middle make the center a rather poor position for fending off enemies- so in a rare subversion of the rule of sticking to the middle, you'll need to utilize the corners well if you want to survive.

Demons will also constantly swoop in, but they'll usually be slowed by the already large concentrations of Flying Demons.

If you manage it, you're in for the worst in the next area.

Stage 3, Area 3

This is by far the hardest area in the game.


At first you're probably thinking "Two Spawn areas? Finally, Respite from the onslaught."

WRONG

The Spawn rate for Shambling Mummies is moderate, culminating in eventual pileups- but the worst of it is that the spawn rate for flying demons is extraordinarily high.

You'll be assaulted from all sides by multiple demons. Hopefully by this point you've got items to use or a bounty of lives to get you to the end of this area.

After you beat this area, you'll receive the last visit from your friendly neighbourhood merchant.


Grab Either the boots, the Gun upgrade or the ammo- any and all upgrades help in the final fight.

Stage 3, Final Boss

With a pure heart, the evil Zombie Necromancer is a formidable foe.

If you saved up any items, Such as the Ammo Sash or the Sheriff's star, now is the time to use it.
(Fair warning, A Power Tablet will not save you here!)

He'll keep to the sides and fire off rapid bullets at you, and then occasionally move into the center to fire off a constant multi-shot in all directions.

The Trick to fighting the Zombie necromancer is all in reading his patterns and movement.

Keep moving when he's firing off his slight-homing rapid shots at you, and when he moves to the middle, grab a few potshots before he activates his burst fire.

Another trick to fighting him is sticking to the corners and shooting him diagonally when he activates his burst fire.

When he's whittled down to low health, he'll begin summoning enemies while firing at you, From third stage enemies all the way back to stage one enemies.

eventually once his health is very low, he'll constantly summon enemes while not firing as much- this is your chance!

Cut through his hordes of enemies and defeat the Zombie Necromancer once and for all!


Sit back, and enjoy the ending cutscene- You've beaten The Journey of the Prairie King!

Notes, Glitches, Q&A and Thanks

• Using a Nuke on a boss causes the boss to die, but the game becomes unable to move forward, resulting in a stuck game.
  
• Ninja-Boxes while in use can cause large enemy pileups
  
• Touching the spawn areas in Stage 1 can insta-kill if you aren't careful about the enemies that spawn there.
  
• You can still grab the extra life at the end of a stage if you've already picked up the item that moves you to the next stage
  
• This was fixed in the recent patch- If you beat the game without dying once, you get a secret achivement!
  
• Apparently Luck does NOT affect the game, so play whenever it's prudent.
  
• using ninja-box during the first two boss fights can and most likely will teleport you over the river allowing you to run behind the boss and shoot him

Thanks go to Veare the Great for providing some valuable information on the Power Tablets ability, The Dangers of enemy spawns and Obtaining the extra life at the end of a stage!

Thanks Also go to Allmyfault for the handy-dandy tip about using Ninja-Boxes with the first Two Stage bosses!


Thank you so much for reading this guide.

I hope it helped you out in the task of completing this difficult game.

If you've got any questions or any information to add, please send me a message on steam.

[Crow Shard]

Psst hey people in the future if you are stuck on Stage 2, Area 3 then take some cheese from here.

[Loed]

press escape if you get swarmed and dont have a good item, then you can start again on the same level

[HelmutSchluckebierVomKahlenAsten]

What you want to say: git gud?

[☆ Jellyfish 808 ☆]

JUST WANTED TO SAY A BIG THANKS TO THIS GUIDE
today marks the day I finally beat it !

[MissDefi]

Is there any way of changing the controls? I am not good using WASD and left right up down at the same time lol. Maybe space and up down left right or WASD and space :P Autohotkey looks like it's for windows and I am on linux running steam play and proton.

[Pennywise]

anyone that can do this without dying add me and ill pay you VIA Paypal if you can do it for me with Steam shareplay

[HotlineBird]

@chiuchciong you could use a gamepad or use something like autohotkey, as described in https://www.reddit.com/r/StardewValley/comments/6im7wz/remapping_journey_of_the_prairie_king_keys/

[*Niko*]

i have problem my s on my keyboard its gone and i cant move down and i dont know how to change controls in JotPK please help

[Soviet Groot]

thx

[JWxd1210]

SeaGobllin he has 300 hp