Overview
Mounts are rideable animals that serve as an alternative to vehicles for exploring Starsand Island. They are cheaper to obtain than vehicles but require ongoing care, housing, daily feeding, and building friendship before an animal will let you ride it. Mounts are unlocked through the Ranching profession at Green Pasture Ranch, with one special exception earned through Exploration.
How to Get Mounts
Option 1: Renting
Visit Pastelle at Green Pasture Ranch (northwest of your starting house at Hopeland). Mounts are available to rent for 15-30 coins per hour depending on the animal. You can walk into the pen and rent an alpaca or ostrich immediately, no profession requirements needed. Rentals are ideal for early-game exploration.
Option 2: Owning
Progress through the Ranching profession quests given by Pastelle. Each tier unlocks new animal types for purchase:
Purchase the animal at Green Pasture Ranch.
Build housing on your farm (barn, stable, or enclosure) using blueprints from Pastelle's shop.
Raise the animal from baby to adult with daily feeding and care.
Build enough friendship, only animals that truly trust you will let you ride them.
Summoning
Press R to open the Garage menu, where you can summon any owned vehicle or mount instantly to your current location. No need to remember where you left them.
Intermediate Rancher Mounts
Sheep and pig-type mounts. All carry 1 rider.
Mount | Details |
|---|---|
Sheep variants | Blue Sheep, Cloud Sheep, Cyan Sheep, Duswool, Ebowool, Green Sheep, Orange Sheep, Purple Sheep, Red Sheep, Snowool, Yellow Sheep. |
A pig-type mount. | |
A special mount with a unique ability: can walk on water. The only mount in the game with this capability. |
Senior Rancher Mounts
Horses and deer. Horses are the only mounts that support two riders.
Horses (2 Riders)
Horses cost 1,350 coins and are the only mount type that supports duo-riding two players can ride the same horse. Available variants:
Horse
Black Horse
Ink Horse
White Horse
Deer (1 Rider)
Item | Description |
|---|---|
Deer | Standard variant. |
1,350 coins. | |
-- | |
-- | |
1,350 coins. Males produce musk as a harvestable resource. |
Note: Some guides report that Musk Deer are not rideable and serve only as resource-producing farm animals. Other guides list them as Senior Rancher mounts. This may vary by game version. As Starsand Island is in Early Access, mount capabilities may be updated in future patches.
Expert Rancher Mounts
Alpacas and ostriches. All carry 1 rider and also produce resources.
Alpacas (1 Rider + Wool)
Alpacas cost 2,750 coins and produce wool alongside being rideable.
Alpaca
Cotton Candy Alpaca
Middle-Parted Alpaca
Punk Alpaca
Ostriches (1 rider + eggs and feathers)
Ostriches cost 2,750 coins and produce eggs and feathers.
Ostrich
Golden Ostrich
Phoenix Ostrich
Snow Ostrich
Luna Deer (Special Mount)
The Luna Deer is a rare mount earned by completing the Expert Explorer Trial in the Moonlit Forest not through Ranching. You must defeat the Ruin Guard boss in the Moonlit Forest ruins.
The Ruin Guard has several attack patterns: ore throws, spin attacks, laser fire, energy pulses, and floral area-of-effect damage. Bring arrows (not basic pellets) and HP-restoring food like Grilled Chicken Wings.
After defeating the boss, the Luna Deer is yours to keep permanently for free no housing, feeding, or friendship required.
Riding Competitions
Starsand Island features riding competitions where players race mounted animals against competitors. Official promotional material shows team-based events (Team Choko, Team Piggy, Team Moomoo, Team Wooly). These events let you compete with your animal companions in speed-based challenges across the island.
Mounts vs. vehicles
Mount | Details |
|---|---|
Cost | Mounts are significantly cheaper than vehicles (1,350-2,750 coins vs. up to 650,000 coins for a car). |
Speed | Vehicles are faster overall. Mounts are slower but still useful for casual exploration. |
Maintenance | Mounts require daily feeding, housing, and friendship building. Vehicles need no upkeep. |
Availability | Mounts must be raised from baby to adult before riding. Vehicles are usable immediately. |
Summoning | Both can be summoned instantly via the Garage menu (press R). |
Duo-riding | Only horses support two riders. No vehicle equivalent. |
Resources | Alpacas produce wool, ostriches produce eggs and feathers, musk deer produce musk. Vehicles produce nothing. |
Water | Pyrox can walk on water. Vehicles require a boat or jet ski for water travel. |
Tips
Rent a mount from Green Pasture Ranch as soon as you can, 15 coins per hour is extremely cheap for early-game mobility.
The Luna Deer is the best free mount in the game. Prioritize the Expert Explorer Trial in the Moonlit Forest if you want a permanent mount without ranching investment.
Horses are the only duo-riding mounts, ideal if you play with friends.
Pyrox's water-walking ability is unique and useful for reaching offshore areas without a boat from Starsand Port.
Expert Rancher mounts (alpacas and ostriches) double as resource producers, giving you wool, eggs, and feathers alongside transportation.
All mounts can be summoned anywhere with the Garage menu, you never need to walk back to Hopeland to retrieve them.