Burn, Baby, Burn...

Ladies and Gentlemen, I want to talk to you about cathartic exercises, and the mentally healthy act of controlled burning of things that remind us of bad times...

Well, it seems the Homestead has heard of this practice too, as to get rid of some of the stuff that's built up over Summer they've decided to have a massive end of Summer bonfire!

So, with safety gloves on, a correctly prepared piece of land and a bucket of water standing by it'll all begin with the usual popup!

That will start off a five mission thread (all details HERE) and a four step building process for the bonfire (all details HERE)

The bonfire itself is a small build and an impermanent one, once we burn it at the end of the missions it'll leave our homestead with nary a scorched patch.

We'll get one new mission reward item that can be bought in the market but doesn't need to be...

And a collection which comes from the final mission reward, a telescope.

So, Prodigy's Firestarter anyone?

Ponies on Parade

Rescuing your boyfriend from a bear all the time is tiring, and you know what they say... All work and no play makes Bess a dull girl...

It's time for Bess to spend some time with her other passion, horses! It's time to have a Prancing Pony Parade and she wants you to help make the best ponies in the show.

As usual, it'll start with a traditional popup!

That starts off the four mission thread (all details HERE) and the three stage build (all details HERE).

From here things get... fairly recognisable if I'm honest.

We'll be teaming up with neighbours, just like the other prize animals, to make the best possible Prancing Ponies.

All the usual screens will be available, the Manager...

...the scoring screen...

...and a new area in the Show Pen to store the Ponies.

There's 6 new ponies and one new HS/Free Gift crop that'll be required for the Pony feed.

Plus two new collections, with more of the nice rewards we've been seeing.

So let's get ponying...

Between a Rock and a Furred Place

OK, there's really no delicate way to say this.

Ted, that big wild mountain man who's one with nature and the animals and is so impressing Bess?

Well, he's stuck up some rocks. It's that age-old story. Boy meets girl, boy traps animals with girl, girl saves boy from cowering on a rock from a bear...

Yes folks, we're going from cave rescue to mountain rescue as we get to help save another of the men in Bess' life, this time wildman Ted who has found his big White Grizzly, only it seems the Grizzly didn't want to be found... Chasing him up some rocks on the bottom edge of your homestead where the Country Fair was...

As usual it'll all start up with a popup showing a bricking it terrified brave Ted scurrying up some rocks to avoid the bear.

That will kick off a four mission thread plus wrapper mission (all details HERE) and a three step build (all details HERE) where Bess has to save Ted by building a trap for the Grizzly. (What with Ted and Hank's general level of talent isn't there a certain competency-deficient issue with the men on our homesteads?)

As can be expected a new set of Bess missions means a new page in her diary, although "had to rescue from bear" probably wont be the section she turns into the wedding vows.

That in turn brings a new set of repeatables and a new item to collect up, Ted's Attention, because lets face it, saving a guy from a bear? Fairly attention grabbing.

As you move up new rewards will be given, a box of cubs, a crate and a rideable Grizzly. I know what you're thinking, another rideable... but this one has a party trick. When riding the Grizzly it only takes ONE hit to clobber any varmint!

We'll see two new animals that can drop from the Owl and Wolf traps...

Along with a new free gift and HS crop, and a mission reward and HS tree...

And finally, the obligatory collection...

So what are you waiting for? Get saving!

Jack Gets Shafted

Someone call Lassie quick, Jack has fallen down a mine and can't get out!

*Sigh*, NO, we can't leave him down there... YES, we'll still get popups... NO, we can't cement over the entrance... Behave the lot of you!

It seems our friendly neighbourhood sack of grizzle and Frontier Wisdom was going a'diggin' for some gold and has got himself trapped in the mineshaft, and it's our job to get him out, as the common sight of a popup will attest to.

The popup will kick off a five mission thread (all details HERE) and a four stage build (all details HERE).

The good news is this isn't a homestead building, instead the Mine will take over the Talent Show area on the front corner of the homestead.

We'll see one new free gift/HS item, the Canary, which will be used in the missions.

And a collection, which gives the Squeezin' the Stone Boost Book!

So let's get digging, it's time to help Jack out...

Privates From Afar

It's never nice to be far away from home when you're in the armed services and Captain Flintlock has a homesick Private from a homestead near yours that he want's your help with.

Private Grant is lonely and finding it hard to move from Frontier life to Army life, so Fanny decides to set your kids a mission, become Private Grant's Pen Pal and make him feel less lonely with stories from home!

As usual, we'll see the traditional popup.

That will kick off a five mission thread (all details HERE).

The mission doesn't have a building to place but does have a small interactive homestead decoration to place, the Mailbox. However, if this one isn't to your liking you can also use other mailboxes we've got over the years that fit into your design better, the stuffed box from the News Stand missions, the blue box from the Wishing Well missions and the Rooster Box from the News Stand badge.

There is a set of "builds", each of which is a letter from your child (all details are HERE).

There's no new free gift items (although we will need three older free gift crops, Aloe Vera, Sparkling Roses and Agave Cactus) but there are two 'new' animals received as mission rewards, the Dragon Goose which we originally saw Halloween past and Sergeant Stubby, that will be needed for missions.

There's also two new collections, one that gives a 4th of July Crate and one that gives a Fully Grown Pine!

So get writing, and cheer up Private Grant!