The Tax Man
The Tax Man is a recurring Farm Path visitor who assigns and collects crop taxes on the 4th and 18th of each season.
The Tax Man first appears on Rebirth 4. This first meeting introduces the tax system and assigns the first bill; no payment is collected that day. Thereafter, he returns every 14 days, on the 4th and 18th day of each season. Paying grants a random blessing, while refusing to pay or allowing the day to end with the bill unpaid inflicts a random curse.
Locations and schedule
| Location | Visit dates | Availability | First collection | Deadline | Visual indication |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Farm Path, western Town Outskirts, beside the produce cart | The 4th and 18th of every season | All day (12:00 AM–11:59 PM) | Rebirth 18 | Before midnight on the visit date | A pale moon, quiet creatures and tax fog announce his arrival |
The first appearance on Rebirth 4 always assigns Wheat ×6 and Radish ×2, due on Rebirth 18. The Tax Man then announces the next bill and its due date at every visit.
How taxes work
- At the beginning of a tax day, the previous tax blessing or curse is removed.
- The Tax Man appears on the Farm Path, and the current bill can be paid at any time before midnight.
- A new bill for the following visit is also generated from the current season's pool.
- If the player has all requested crops, choosing Yes, I have your payment here removes them and grants one random blessing.
- Choosing Just give me a moment... postpones the decision without penalty, allowing the player to return later that day.
- Choosing I refuse to pay! immediately applies one random curse.
- If the bill remains unpaid at midnight, it is treated as missed and one random curse is applied automatically.
All four crop qualities count toward a bill's total: Wheat Regular (Basic), Wheat Silver (Quality), Wheat Gold (Artisan) and Wheat Void (Perfect). When several qualities are carried, Regular crops are normally consumed before Silver, Gold and Void crops.
The Tax Man does not check whether a crop's seed has been unlocked. A bill may therefore include a crop whose normal seed source the player has not yet unlocked.
Assignment timing
The season determines the pool when a bill is assigned, not when it is eventually paid. A bill assigned on the 18th is due on the 4th of the following season, but still comes from the earlier season's pool. For example, the bill assigned on Rebirth 18 and due on Harvest 4 uses the Rebirth table.
| Visit when bill is assigned | Date that bill is due | Pool used |
|---|---|---|
| Rebirth 4 | Rebirth 18 | Fixed first bill: roll 3 |
| Rebirth 18 | Harvest 4 | Rebirth |
| Harvest 4 | Harvest 18 | Harvest |
| Harvest 18 | Witch 4 | Harvest |
| Witch 4 | Witch 18 | Witch |
| Witch 18 | Death 4 | Witch |
| Death 4 | Death 18 | Death |
| Death 18 | Rebirth 4 of the next year | Death |
Possible tax bills
The same numbered bill cannot be selected twice in succession. On the first draw from a new seasonal pool, each Rebirth, Harvest or Witch bill has a 1-in-6 chance, while each Death bill has a 1-in-4 chance. If the previous bill belongs to the same pool, it is excluded: each of the other five bills then has a 1-in-5 chance, or each of the other three Death bills has a 1-in-3 chance.
Rebirth assignments
| Roll | First requirement | Second requirement | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Radish ×4 | Celery ×2 | |
| 2 | Wheat ×4 | Eyeball ×4 | |
| 3 | Wheat ×6 | Radish ×2 | Fixed first bill, assigned on Rebirth 4 |
| 4 | Wheat ×6 | Celery ×2 | |
| 5 | Celery ×4 | — | |
| 6 | Eyeball ×3 | Radish ×3 |
Harvest assignments
| Roll | First requirement | Second requirement |
|---|---|---|
| 7 | Wheat ×8 | Celery ×2 |
| 8 | Celery ×4 | — |
| 9 | Pumpkin ×2 | Celery ×2 |
| 10 | Pumpkin ×2 | Tomato ×6 |
| 11 | Corn ×2 | Watermelon ×2 |
| 12 | Dread Pepper ×2 | Corn ×2 |
Witch assignments
| Roll | First requirement | Second requirement |
|---|---|---|
| 13 | Corn ×2 | Eyeball ×4 |
| 14 | Corn ×2 | Squash ×2 |
| 15 | Pumpkin ×2 | Devilberries ×4 |
| 16 | Pumpkin ×2 | Corn ×2 |
| 17 | Celery ×2 | Devilberries ×4 |
| 18 | Squash ×2 | Pumpkin ×2 |
Death assignments
| Roll | First requirement | Second requirement |
|---|---|---|
| 19 | Deathleaf ×4 | Tooth ×4 |
| 20 | Tooth ×4 | Ghostberries ×6 |
| 21 | Ghostberries ×2 | Deathleaf ×4 |
| 22 | Deathleaf ×6 | — |
Crop availability
| Crop | Seed source | Availability |
|---|---|---|
| Celery | Farming Shop | Starting stock |
| Eyeball | Grow from an Eyeleaf Seed from the Farming Shop | Starting stock |
| Radish | Farming Shop | Starting stock |
| Tooth | Grow from a Toothbush Seed from the Farming Shop | Starting stock |
| Wheat | Farming Shop | Starting stock |
| Pumpkin | Farming Shop | Locked: complete The Skull Chalice |
| Corn | Farming Shop | Locked: complete A Fast Food Fiend |
| Dread Pepper | Seasonal Seed Shop on Mondays and Fridays | Available during Harvest |
| Tomato | Seasonal Seed Shop on Mondays and Fridays | Available during Harvest |
| Watermelon | Seasonal Seed Shop on Mondays and Fridays | Available during Harvest |
| Devilberries | Seasonal Seed Shop on Mondays and Fridays | Available during Witch |
| Squash | Seasonal Seed Shop on Mondays and Fridays | Available during Witch |
| Deathleaf | Seasonal Seed Shop on Mondays and Fridays | Available during Death |
| Ghostberries | Seasonal Seed Shop on Mondays and Fridays | Available during Death |
Tax outcomes
Only one tax blessing or curse can be active at a time. It remains active until the beginning of the next tax day, when it is removed before the new bill is resolved.
Paid
Paying the complete bill selects one of four blessings with an equal 1-in-4 chance (25%).
| Blessing | Message | Mechanical effect | Chance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tax Boon | You have been blessed with Tax Boon. | Defense and M. Defense are multiplied by 1.10. | 25% |
| Plenty | You have been blessed with Plenty. | Raises the chance of a good sleep roll from 50% to 75%. | 25% |
| Growth | You have been blessed with Growth. | Adds 5 percentage points to the bonus crop-yield chance on all three plots. | 25% |
| Burgeoning | You have been blessed with Burgeoning. | Adds 5 percentage points to the crop-quality bonus for all plots. | 25% |
Refused or missed
Refusing payment or failing to pay by midnight selects one of three curses with an equal 1-in-3 chance (33.33%).
| Curse | Message | Mechanical effect | Chance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tax Plague | You have been afflicted with Tax Plague. | Attack and M. Attack are multiplied by 0.90. | 33.33% |
| Carrion | You have been afflicted with Carrion. | Crows eat 10% more crops on all three plots. | 33.33% |
| Blight | You have been afflicted with Blight. | Subtracts 10 percentage points from both the bonus crop-yield chance and crop-quality bonus on all plots. | 33.33% |
Potion of Debt
Using a Potion of Debt rerolls the current Taxes Owed for the next visit. It does not change the Taxes Due on the present tax day.
The reroll follows the normal seasonal pool and cannot equal the previously paid bill. The reroll can randomly produce the same requirements again.
Notes
- The Tax Man has no friendship requirement or task-based unlock.
- The first visit is an introduction and bill assignment; the first actual crop payment is due on Rebirth 18.
- Bills request crops rather than gold.
- Crop qualities are combined when checking whether the player can pay.
Interactions
| Situation | When or requirement | Task or interaction details | Items, rewards and other results |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crop-tax conversation — Task in progress | After The Farmer's Path introduces crop taxes, speak to the Tax Man at the Farm about the current demand. He only starts a new collection when the previous payment has been resolved. | “Have you brought your payment?” “What Hans could not pay, you will.” “If you can pay, I offer great boons in return.” “You will pay what I ask... or you will pay what I didn't.” |
No immediate inventory item or gold change. |
| Crop-tax collection — Task in progress | During an unpaid crop-tax collection, carry the exact crops and quantities demanded by the Tax Man and pay before midnight. Each collection has its own demand; see Tax System. | “This payment... is due. (<value> x<value> and <value> x<value>)” “This payment... is due. (<value> x<value>)” “For your diligence... a reward.” “Pay up before midnight, or else...” |
No immediate inventory item or gold change. |
Dialogue
Show dialogue by situation
- Crop-tax conversation — Initial conversation
When: a crop-tax demand is pending; Taxes Paid/Failed is inactive.
- “I have returned, to collect my due...”
- Crop-tax conversation — Task in progress
When: a crop-tax demand is pending; Taxes Paid/Failed is inactive.
- “Have you brought your payment?”
- Crop-tax conversation — Initial conversation
When: Tax Intro is inactive.
- “Greetings, citizen...”
- “I am The Tax Man, and I have come to collect.”
- “This farm here is overdue, and it is time to square up.”
- “But... do not worry. I am a fair man.”
- “If you can pay, I offer great boons in return.”
- “And if you cannot... I offer great misfortune.”
- “Every 2 weeks, I will meet you here.”
- “You will pay what I ask... or you will pay what I didn't.”
- “Either way, you will pay.”
- “So, for my next arrival...”
- Crop-tax conversation — Initial conversation
When: Tax Intro is inactive; Speak to Hans is active.
- “A little birdie told me that you are now working these fields.”
- “With this land comes great promise... and great debt.”
- “What Hans could not pay, you will.”
- Crop-tax conversation — Initial conversation
- “I will return two weeks from today.”
- “Meet me here with payment ready... or pay another price.”
- Crop-tax collection — Initial conversation
When: Tax Item 2 Count > 0.
- “This payment... is due. (<value> x<value> and <value> x<value>)”
- Crop-tax collection — Initial conversation
- “This payment... is due. (<value> x<value>)”
- Crop-tax collection — Task in progress
- “Have you brought me what you owe?”
- Player responses: “Yes, I have your payment here”; “Just give me a moment...”; “I refuse to pay!”
- Crop-tax collection — Choice response
When: the player chooses “Yes, I have your payment here”.
- “Yesss..... This is sufficient.”
- “For your diligence... a reward.”
- Crop-tax collection — Choice response
When: the player chooses “Just give me a moment...”.
- “Pay up before midnight, or else...”
- Crop-tax collection — Choice response
When: the player chooses “I refuse to pay!”.
- “Fine, have it your way. Heh heh heh...”
- “The Tax Man always collects, heh heh heh...”
- “And with that out of the way...”
- “Fine, have it your way. Heh hehheh...”
- Crop-tax assessment — Initial conversation
When: Tax Sign is inactive; Tax Item 2 Count > 0.
- “This... is what you will owe next. (<value> x<value> and <value> x<value>)”
- Crop-tax assessment — Initial conversation
When: Tax Sign is inactive.
- “This... is what you will owe next. (<value> x<value>)”