Revision 4

Overview

The Spotted Deer is a rideable animal in Starsand Island, unlocked at the Senior Rancher tier. It is purchased from Pastelle at Green Pasture Ranch for 1,350 Coins and housed in a Deer Barn. Described in the game as "lively and agile, like little forest elves," the Spotted Deer is the base common variant of the deer species and is a one-person mount.

Unlike most ranch animals that are raised primarily for their byproducts, the Spotted Deer's main value comes from its role as a personal mount. It does produce Deer Antler periodically, a rare and valuable processing material, along with Poop that can be collected for fertilizer. Players interested in musk-based products should look at the separate Musk Deer species instead.

Quick Reference

Unlocking the Spotted Deer

The Spotted Deer becomes available for purchase once you reach the Senior Rancher tier of the Ranching profession. Reaching Senior Rancher requires completing all preceding rancher trials (Apprentice, Junior, and Intermediate). The Senior Rancher trial itself involves breeding a specific horse variant for Zephyria, so you will already need significant experience with the ranching and breeding systems before you can access deer.

Once you pass the Senior Rancher trial, Pastelle's shop terminal at Green Pasture Ranch will stock the Spotted Deer alongside the Horse and Musk Deer. All three Senior-tier animals cost 1,350 Coins each.

Before purchasing your first Spotted Deer, make sure you have the Deer Barn blueprint. This blueprint becomes available in Pastelle's shop at the same tier. Build the Deer Barn on your property first, then purchase the deer. Each Deer Barn can hold up to four deer, and you will need at least one male and one female if you plan to breed.

Housing

Spotted Deer require a Deer Barn for housing. The Deer Barn blueprint is available from Pastelle's shop once you reach Senior Rancher. After purchasing the blueprint, craft the barn at a Worktable and place it on your property. The Deer Barn has space for up to four deer of any variant (Spotted Deer, White Deer, Lucky Deer, or Moonlight Deer).

Note that Musk Deer are a separate species and use a different enclosure called the Musk Deer Barn. You cannot house Spotted Deer and Musk Deer together.

Care and Feeding

Like all ranch animals in Starsand Island, Spotted Deer need daily attention to stay healthy and maintain high happiness. A happy deer produces better products and builds affection faster, which is important if you want to eventually ride it as a mount.

Happiness is the key stat that affects product quality and mount trust. A Spotted Deer with happiness above 150 produces higher-quality Deer Antler that sells for more. Keeping a consistent daily care routine is the most reliable way to raise happiness.

Products

Spotted Deer are primarily valued as mounts rather than product animals. However, they do produce two collectible items from the Deer Barn.

If you are looking for more valuable animal byproducts from the deer family, consider raising Musk Deer alongside your Spotted Deer. Musk Deer produce Musk (a valuable bounty item) and Musk Cocoon (a processing material), though they cannot be ridden.

Special Feed

Beyond standard Deer Feed, the game offers enhanced feed options that affect the type of droppings your deer produces. These are crafted at special feeder stations.

Silver Poop and Golden Poop are more valuable than regular Poop and produce better fertilizer when processed. If you have access to the Mirth Feeder or Love Feeder, using enhanced feed on your deer is an easy way to get more value out of their daily droppings.

Using the Spotted Deer as a Mount

One of the main reasons players raise Spotted Deer is to use them as mounts. The Spotted Deer is a one-person mount, meaning only the player can ride it (no passenger). To ride your deer, you need to meet three requirements.

1. Fully grown: The deer must have reached adulthood. Baby and juvenile deer cannot be mounted.

2. High enough affection: Build friendship through daily care, hand-feeding, and petting. Only a deer that trusts you will allow riding.

3. Friendship Collar: Equip the deer with a Friendship Collar. The blueprint for this item becomes available in Pastelle's shop at Senior Rancher. Craft it at a Worktable.

Once all three conditions are met, approach the deer and press F to mount it. Deer mounts are fast and agile, making them a great option for exploring the island before you can afford more expensive vehicles.

You can summon any mount you own by pressing R to open the Garage menu and selecting it. This lets you call your deer to your current location instantly, without needing to walk back to the Deer Barn.

Compared to other Senior-tier mounts, the Spotted Deer has similar speed to the Horse. Horses are two-person mounts (you can carry a passenger), while the Spotted Deer is limited to one person. However, deer feel more nimble in tight spaces and forested areas. For even faster mounts, the Expert-tier Alpacas and Ostriches are available later in the progression.

Breeding

Spotted Deer can be bred through the standard breeding system. To breed deer, you need one male and one female of the same species living in the same Deer Barn with at least one empty slot. Breeding occurs overnight, and one breeding event can happen per enclosure per day.

For more controlled breeding, use the Selective Breeding House (blueprint available at Intermediate Rancher for 3,500 Coins). The Breeding House lets you choose specific pairs and gives better control over which DNA traits pass to offspring.

Deer Variants

Breeding Spotted Deer together can produce rarer deer variants. Each variant has a different appearance and rarity, but all deer variants share the same housing, feed, and mount capabilities.

The White Deer and Lucky Deer can both appear as random mutations when breeding two Spotted Deer together. The Moonlight Deer is the super rare variant of the deer family and is one of the most visually striking animals in the game. It produces Deer Antler, Fur, and Poop, giving it slightly better product output than the base Spotted Deer.

The Luna Deer is a special case. It is not obtained through ranching or breeding at all. Instead, it is a permanent mount reward earned by completing the Explorer profession's Moonlit Forest questline and defeating the Ruin Guard boss. The Luna Deer requires no housing, feeding, or friendship; it is yours to keep and ride freely after claiming it.

DNA Traits

Like all animals, deer inherit DNA traits from their parents. When breeding Spotted Deer, look for positive traits that benefit your goals.

Negative traits to avoid include Pride (the deer cannot be petted, making it harder to build affection), Petiteness (permanently small, cosmetic), and Bloom (decreased happiness gain). Sell deer with multiple negative traits to keep your breeding stock healthy.

Comparison with Musk Deer

The Spotted Deer and Musk Deer are the two deer-family species available at Senior Rancher, and they cost the same (1,350 Coins). Despite both being called "deer," they serve very different roles on your ranch.

Most players will want to raise both species. Use Spotted Deer for transportation and light Deer Antler income. Use Musk Deer for their musk production, which is a valuable bounty item. The two species require separate enclosures, so plan your property layout to accommodate both Deer Barns and Musk Deer Barns if you are going all-in on deer ranching.

Tips

• Buy one male and one female Spotted Deer as soon as you reach Senior Rancher. Start breeding immediately to work toward the rarer variants.

• Hand-feeding your deer builds affection significantly faster than using the feeder trough. If your goal is to ride the deer as quickly as possible, hand-feed it every day.

• The Friendship Collar blueprint is available at Senior Rancher. Craft it at a Worktable as soon as you can. You will need it for any mount-capable animal.

• Deer Antler is described as "soft gold" and sells for a solid price. While the Spotted Deer is not a top-tier product animal, the antlers provide a nice side income.

• If you want to collect both Deer Antler and Musk, raise Spotted Deer and Musk Deer in separate barns. They cannot share housing.

• The Moonlight Deer super rare variant produces Fur in addition to Deer Antler and Poop, making it the most productive deer variant. Aim for it if you enjoy the breeding system.

• Press R to summon your deer mount instantly through the Garage menu. You do not need to walk back to the barn every time you want to ride.

• Playing the Ukulele near the Deer Barn is an efficient way to boost happiness for all deer at once, especially when you have a full barn of four.

• The Luna Deer from the Moonlit Forest is a free permanent mount with no upkeep cost. If you just need a deer mount and do not care about breeding, completing the Explorer questline may be a faster path.

Related Articles

• Animals

• Musk Deer

• Luna Deer

• Mounts

• Breeding and Genetics

• Green Pasture Ranch

• Rancher Trial Walkthroughs

• Animal Feed

• Friendship Collar