Starsand Island: How To Get Honeycomb Without Losing Your Mind
Getting honeycomb in Starsand Island is a massive pain in the ass if you do not realize you are supposed to be staring at the canopy instead of the dirt.
I spent an embarrassing amount of time wandering around this idyllic little island looking for a magical bush that dispensed honeycomb. Turns out the game wants you to be a lumberjack first. It is a total chicken or the egg situation. You need a beehive to make honey, but you need honeycomb to build the actual beehive. If you are running around in circles trying to figure out how to jumpstart your local agriculture, I am going to save you the headache and show you exactly where to look.
Look Up and Start Chopping
You will not find honeycomb sitting in the grass. You need to hunt down wild beehives hanging in the trees. The game does not hold your hand here. You have to get close enough to a tree for the leaves to fade out so you can physically see the naked branches.
I have had the best luck hunting down Banyan trees, which require an Impact Axe or better to actually chop down. You will spot the small yellow hives dangling up high in the branches. You can find these trees primarily on Windflute Island, which is a quick swim southwest of Blue Beach, or up north near the Bastram Heights monastery. You also have a decent shot checking the northern stretch between Zephyria and Youfang's houses.
Chop the whole tree down and the beehive will crash to the ground. Pick it up to score your honeycomb. If you are lucky, a Bumblebee or even a Queen Bee will drop with it. You need six pieces of honeycomb total to build your own setup, so keep swinging that axe.
Catching the Swarm
You cannot just build a wooden box and expect honey to magically appear. You need actual bees to do the heavy lifting.
If you didn't get lucky with drops from the fallen trees, you have to go catch them manually. Head over to the flowers blooming near Zephyria's house in the northwest corner of the island to find standard bees. They do not fly incredibly fast, but they are skittish. Walk slowly to approach them. If you run in like a lunatic, they will scatter before you can even swing your net.
If you are hunting for Queen Bees out in the wild, check the trees specifically located between Zephyria's residence and Pastelle's Ranch. Feed a Queen Bee some Royal Jelly later on, and she will breed even more bees for your farm.
Crafting and Running the Beehive
Once you have your six pieces of honeycomb, you still have to jump through a few hoops to get your honey farm running.
First, you need to grind your Ranching profession up to the Intermediate level. When you hit that milestone, head over to Pastelle's shop and buy the beehive blueprint. Craft the hive and drop it anywhere on your home lot.
Farming the Sweet Stuff
Now you just dump your captured bees into the open slots in the hive. Let them do their thing during the day, and eventually, you can just walk up and harvest the honey exactly like you collect materials from your animal pens. Use it to cook some decent food or just sell it to fund your next island project. It is a grind to set up, but passive income is always worth the initial headache.
