Recommendations: Creative Difficulty Mods
A list of mods that make the game more difficult in more interesting ways than just increasing or decreasing stats. Some of these have not been tested in 1.5, so check the comments and be careful if installing them into an existing game.
Farming
Watering Grants Experience And Crops Can Wither
Author: Goldenrevolver
Watering Grants Experience And Crops Can Wither, as the name suggests, adds the possibility for crops to wither and die if not watered either by rain or by the player. You can configure how many days it'll take without watering before they'll die.
Animals Die - Old Age - Hunger - Illness
Author: Goldenrevolver
Animals Die - Old Age - Hunger - Illness adds the possibility that farm animals can die by various means, both preventable and unpreventable. Has additional functionality if Animals Need Water is also installed.
Animals Need Water
Author: GZhynko
Animals Need Water adds functionality to the water troughs in barns and coops so that animals will lose friendship if they aren't provided with fresh water each day.
Infertile Soil
Author: Sabera / kelbesque
Infertile Soil changes your farm so that crops can't grow in the soil and will immediately die the next day, but changes the garden pot item to be cheaper and immediately available.
Balanced Valley
Author: o0MrPro
Balanced Valley includes different balance modes; in particular, the "deadline mode" changes crops so that the player must plant only on the first day of the season and harvest on the last day of the season, and removes crop regrowth.
Dynamic Valley
Author: HaulinOats / socialcoder
Dynamic Valley randomises all of the vanilla crops, including purchase price, sell price, growth time, and regrowth capabilities, which encourages experimentation rather than sticking to the same most efficient crops.
Seed Shop Progression Mod
Author: 9br3
Seed Shop Progression Mod changes Pierre's shop menu so that he only has a small selection of seeds in Year 1 and improves his stock over time.
Seed Shortage
Author: Xynerorias
Seed Shortage removes seeds from shopkeepers so that players must obtain seeds by putting crops through a seedmaker or by mixed seeds. Recommended to use alongside Better Mixed Seeds so that all crops can be found via mixed seeds. More customisable and more compatible with other mods than Seeds Are Rare.
Seeds Are Rare
Author: jahangmar
Seeds Are Rare removes seeds from shopkeepers so that players must obtain seeds by putting crops through a seedmaker or by mixed seeds. Recommended to use alongside Better Mixed Seeds so that all crops can be found via mixed seeds. Edits the seedmaker so that it is cheaper and obtained at level 1 farming skill, unlike Seed Shortage.
Fine I Will Go Make My Own Seeds
Author: HaulinOats / socialcoder
Fine I Will Go Make My Own Seeds changes seed prices to astronomical levels and makes the seed maker harder to craft, requiring players to obtain crops via mixed seeds or the author's processor mods, Fish-2-Seed Processor, [Fish-2-Seed Processor Mining-2-Seed Processor], and Mixed Seed Kiln.
Pierre's Roulette Shop
Author: Xynerorias
Pierre's Roulette Shop changes the shop menu so that shopkeepers only have a small number of randomised seeds and saplings each day. Compatible with mod-added crops and trees.
Compost Pests and Cultivation
Author: jahangmar
Compost Pests and Cultivation adds the possibility for pests to infest your crops, adds traits to crops so that low-trait crops will grow badly, and adds a compost system that requires a balance of nitrogen and carbon rich materials.
Void Effects
Author: Renny
Void Effects (original) / (unofficial update) changes void items so that they're more valuable, but drain your health and stamina while in your inventory and send you into a coma for several days when eaten.
Friendships
Gift Decline
Author: desto / JustToDownloadThings
Gift Decline changes the gifting system so that townspeople will like gifts less if they are given the same thing too often, requiring the player to be creative in what you gift people.
Seasonal Gift Tastes
Author: xiddav
Seasonal Gift Tastes changes gift tastes so that people like crops more when they are in season and less when they are out of season.
Enhanced Relationships
Author: Mizzion
Enhanced Relationships (Nexus) / (ModDrop) makes gaining friendship more difficult by increasing the friendship decay rate and adding a loss of friendship points if you don't give someone a gift on their birthday.
Random Tastes
Author: skiilaa
Random Tastes (original) / (unofficial update) randomises what gifts the townspeople love and hate.
Sharing is Caring
Author: skiilaa
Sharing is Caring adds a chance that villagers will take liked or loved items from your inventory when you're nearby.
Food
The Love of Cooking
Author: blueberry
The Love of Cooking overhauls the cooking system in many regards, but also adds the frying pan as a new tool that needs to be upgraded in order to access higher-level recipes, makes food heal over time instead of instantaneously, and adds the chance of burning food at low skill levels.
Mandatory Meals
Author: Darzington
Mandatory Meals adds a small quest each day that requires the player to eat a proper meal, otherwise you'll only recover half of your stamina the next day.
Spice of Life
Author: KarratKake
Spice of Life reduces stamina gains from foods eaten too frequently, so that you have to vary your diet in order to gain maximum benefits.
Another Hunger Mod
Author: spacechase0 and Pathoschild
Another Hunger Mod (Nexus) / (ModDrop) adds a hunger meter to the game that reduces over time, with debuffs if you hunger meter is too low and a heart point reduction with your spouse if you don't provide them with food.
Farm Maps
Tiny Farm
Author: XxHarvzBackxX
Tiny Farm adds an incredibly tiny farm map without a greenhouse and with only enough space for two buildings and a single plot of farmland.
Hardew Valley (Hard Mode - Plan smart - Risk it all - QoL)
Author: Juanpa98ar
Hardew Valley has options to change the majority of statistics to make the game more difficult, but also includes two optional farm maps. One is a standard farm map with half the size of the vanilla map, while the other is three quarters smaller and cannot grow any crops; instead, the farm cave must be used for growing.
Tiny Garden Farm
Author: DaisyNiko
Tiny Garden Farm adds a tiny farm map, one third the size of the standard map, with a small pond and a foresty feel.
Tiny Mountain Farm
Author: DaisyNiko
Tiny Mountain Farm adds a small map with a mountain feel and a small quarry.
Small Beach Farm
Author: Pathoschild
Small Beach Farm adds a tiny beach map with a river mouth where both ocean and river fish can be caught.
Small Farm
Author: HelleboreHel
Small Farm adds a small farm map with no water access and little space for buildings.
Tiniest Farm
Author: EllieBellaLuna
Tiniest Farm adds an incredibly tiny farm map with almost no space for buildings.
Bundles
SystemWorks' Bundle Tweaks
Author: SystemWorks
SystemWorks' Bundle Tweaks edits the Community Center bundles for better balance, but also includes a config option for late-game oriented bundles that require more difficult items for completion. Note: Some users have reported issues with this mod breaking other bundles after completing the first one, so use with caution.
Challenging Community Center Bundles
Author: Alvadea & Jaksha6472
Challenging Community Center Bundles (Nexus) / (ModDrop) edits the Community Center bundles for increased challenge. The vanilla bundle is not recommended as it mostly just increases the number of items required, but if you are also using the PPJA suite, then the PPJA set changes the bundles to include PPJA items.
Economics
Ferngill Revenue Service - A Taxes and Bills Mod
Author: KarratKake
Ferngill Revenue Service adds a tax system that taxes the player based on your income, your water bill (calculated from the number of sprinklers), and your electricity bill (calculated from the size of your farmhouse, the number of farm buildings, and the number of machines).
Economy Mod
Author: millerscout
Economy Mod adds a tax system that taxes the player based on the quantity of tillable soil and the amount of objects such as weeds that decrease the land value.
Serfdom - Immersive Taxes
Author: DaLion / VonLoewe
Serfdom - Immersive Taxes adds a tax system that taxes the player based on the total monthly shipping bin income.
Demanding Shipping
Author: lech43
Demanding Shipping adds a new shipping demands system where each day, a particular set of items are in high demand and you'll gain bonuses if you can ship all of them.
Price Fluctuation
Author: lech43
Price Fluctuation changes shipping prices so that they fluctuate on a configurable basis between a minimum and maximum price range.
Combat
Custom Death Penalty Plus
Author: MightyAmondee
Custom Death Penalty Plus (Nexus) / (ModDrop) allows for customisation of the penalty of dying in the mines, Skull Cavern, or volcano, including the option for friendship loss with Harvey and Maru, applying a random debuff, and adding more potential places to wake up other than the clinic or the mines.
Murdercrows
Author: aedenthorn
Murdercrows adds waves of monsters that attack your farm each day and destroy things and gives scarecrows and rarecrows the ability to shoot rocks and fireballs to protect you.
Hardcore Mines 2
Author: ItsLittany
Hardcore Mines 2 adds monsters with boss-level stats on every 10th level of the mines and Skull Cavern.
Boss Creatures
Author: aedenthorn
Boss Creatures adds new giant boss creatures with special attacks to monster floors of the mines and Skull Cavern and optionally around various places in Stardew Valley.
Cropbeasts
Author: kdau
Cropbeasts (Nexus) / (ModDrop) adds cropbeasts, cursed crops that turn into monsters with varied attacks and drop the original crop plus a chance of extra loot when defeated.
Personal
UV Index (Sunscreen Mod)
Author: Jonqora
UV Index (Sunscreen Mod) adds sunscreen to the game and the possibility of getting sunburnt if you don't wear it on sunny days. Note: Currently appears to be broken in 1.5.
Dynamic Running Speed
Author: Vrakyas
Dynamic Running Speed changes the player's running speed depending on different factors, including slower running speed in dirt, stormy weather, or when over-encumbered.
Cacti Hurt You
Author: CatCattyCat
Cacti Hurt You (Nexus) / (ModDrop) changes cacti so that you lose health if you run into or interact with one.
Working Fireplace
Author: jahangmar
Working Fireplace changes the fireplace so that it requires a few pieces of wood to burn and adds a basic warmth system so that in winter or on rainy days in spring and fall, you will lose health, stamina, and heart points with your spouse if the house is cold overnight.
Weather Illnesses
Author: Sakorona
Weather Illnesses (Nexus) / (ModDrop) adds stamina drain and the possibility of getting sick if you're outside for too long in bad weather.
Remember Your Umbrella
Author: heyseth
Remember Your Umbrella adds umbrellas for the player along with a wetness system, where your stamina will slowly drain if you stand outdoors for too long without an umbrella.
Starksouls
Author: FenrirAsonda
Starksouls makes the farmer's health and stamina keep the same values from the day's end in the next day rather than returning to full. The amount of health/stamina recovered is configurable, as is the amount of health/stamina recovered after dying.
Stardew Survival Project
Author: FenrirAsonda
Stardew Survival Project adds various realism mechanics to Stardew Valley such as thirst, hunger, body temperature, and a HP rework.
Other
Challenger
Author: Slothsoft / staubwirbel
Challenger adds several challenge modes, such as Hermit, No Capitalist, Brewery, and Vineyard, which imposes limitations on what you can do.
Underground Secrets
Author: aedenthorn
Underground Secrets adds traps, riddle shrines, suspicious altars, and collapsing floors to the mines and Skull Cavern.
Angry Grandpa - Farm Evaluation Overhaul
Author: Jonqora
Angry Grandpa overhauls the evaluation given by Grandpa so that it takes more factors into account and can take place after a shorter timeframe.
Custom Dungeon Floors
Author: aedenthorn
Custom Dungeon Floors makes it possible to configure many aspects of the mines and Skull Caverns, including how often monster floors spawn, how many monsters will be present on each dungeon floor, and how many gems, nodes and ores will spawn.
More Random Edition (Randomizer)
Author: Chikakoo, doomdonuts & Tooshi
More Random Edition (Randomizer) randomises many elements of the game, including randomised bundle sets, crafting recipes, crops, item trees, and more.
Traveling Takes Time
Author: Vrakyas
Traveling Takes Time changes the bus and minecarts so that they are not instantaneous, with the time taken depending on the distance between destinations.
Moody Planet
Author: Deathest1
Moody Planet adds daily planet moods that affect different things in random ways.
Restauranteer
Author: aedenthorn
Restauranteer lets you work part-time in the Stardrop Saloon as a short-order cook, fulfilling patron food orders for coins, friendship points, and cooking proficiency.
Climates of Ferngill
Author: Sakorona
Climates of Ferngill (Nexus) / (ModDrop) adds new fog and blizzard weathers at random times of day, making it difficult to see. Integrates with Weather Illnesses.