You unlock the Sunhat Starfish companion by fully completing Captain Conch’s questline on the FischFest event island — the help-NPC tasks, the four-conch sandcastle puzzle, and the final Flameslasher catch — after which Captain Conch hands you the companion plus an unrestricted Starshell Rod.
Sunhat Starfish, in short
It sits at the very end of one of FischFest’s longer quest chains, so think of it as a completion reward rather than a drop. The single requirement is simple to state and slow to satisfy: clear every Captain Conch quest, including the side jobs he points you toward. Stop partway and the companion never appears. As a small piece of flavor, the companion has 5 arms, and each catch you land lights up one of them.
How to complete Captain Conch’s questline and unlock the Sunhat Starfish
These are the progression gates the questline moves you through, not a click-by-click demo — the order is what matters, and none of the side objectives are skippable.
STEP 1/7
Start Captain Conch’s questline
Travel to FischFest Island, find Captain Conch (often spelled “Conk” in clips) and take his first quests.
STEP 2/7
Clear the early event quests
Work through the opening tasks he gives, which reportedly include delivering Driftwood to the Bonfire on the island.
STEP 3/7
Help the side NPCs he points you to
When asked, assist the other NPCs marked with white exclamation marks (early players report around five), then return to Captain Conch — this step is mandatory, not optional.
STEP 4/7
Open the sandcastle hatch
Progress far enough to open the giant Sand Castle hatch and reach the Heart of the Island, one of the later parts of the event.
STEP 5/7
Solve the four-conch puzzle
Collect the red, orange, green and purple conches and place each on its matching platform (see the puzzle table below).
STEP 6/7
Catch the Flameslasher
Accept the final task and catch a Flameslasher using the Starshell Rod — the wrong rod will not count.
STEP 7/7
Claim your reward
Return to Captain Conch; after the fireworks animation you receive the Sunhat Starfish companion and the unrestricted Starshell Rod.
Do every side quest Captain Conch sends you on — the help-NPC jobs and mini-games are real progression gates, and skipping them is the most common reason the questline silently stalls.
Video help
The four-conch sandcastle puzzle
| Conch | How you get the bottle | Where to find / place it |
|---|---|---|
| Red | Finish the Jetski Race under the time limit (early players report a 15 Sunshell entry fee and a sub-2-minute target, both unconfirmed) | Use the Red Bottle to dig up the conch with the Plastic Shovel near the sandcastle |
| Orange | Obtained from the Orange Bottle | Inside the giant Sand Castle, by the orange conch platform |
| Green | Obtained from the Green Bottle | Near the Sand Castle Referee / Ship Ride area |
| Purple | Bought from the Shell Merchant for Sunshell (exact cost not clearly shown) | Place on its matching platform with the other three |
This is the part of the chain most likely to trip you up, because the four bottles come from four different places. The red one is gated behind a timed race, the purple one costs event currency from a merchant, and the other two turn up as you explore the sandcastle. Once all four conches are seated on their platforms, the final Captain Conch task opens up. Players also report a Sunshell payout somewhere in the 3,000–3,500 range along the way, though the exact figure varies and isn’t confirmed in-game.
What the companion does and whether it’s worth the grind
The Sunhat Starfish earns its keep on FischFest 2 mutations. It reportedly adds a +20% base mutation-chance bonus that climbs to roughly +35% at max level. The catch is how that number works: it is not a flat 20% chance on each individual mutation. There are many FischFest 2 mutations in the pool, and the bonus is spread across the whole pool, so it lifts your overall odds rather than guaranteeing any one result.
That distinction matters when you’re chasing a specific mutation like Tanned or Super Tanned. Approximate community testing puts the Tanned chance around ~10% and Super Tanned near ~1% with the companion in play — but those are testing-based estimates, not official rates. For comparison, simply appraising fish reportedly lands Tanned at around 0.002% and Super Tanned near 0.000025%, so the companion is a meaningful jump. Pair it with Tropical Sun weather and you stack the conditions in your favor for Tanned and Super Tanned farming.
Mistakes that stall the unlock
The biggest one is assuming a single quest finishes the job — you have to clear every Captain Conch quest, including the help-NPC tasks and mini-games. Skipping the side NPCs is the usual culprit when the chain refuses to advance. Players also get stuck because they never open the Heart of the Island, which gates the conch puzzle and the Flameslasher catch entirely.
What to chase next from FischFest
You don’t just walk away with the companion — you also get the Starshell Rod (unrestricted) in the same handover, so it’s worth looking into the best enchants for it next. From there, many players go after the Lagoon Serenade Rod, another reward tied to this event’s content.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will the Sunhat Starfish leave when FischFest ends?
It’s a reward from the limited-time FischFest summer event, so finish Captain Conch’s questline while the event is live. Once the event closes, the questline — and the companion with it — won’t be obtainable until it returns, if it does.
Do I need to be Level 30 to get the companion?
Older companion coverage notes that the Companion Satchel unlocks automatically at Level 30, so a level requirement is likely. That said, it hasn’t been separately confirmed for the Sunhat Starfish specifically, since this companion was added after those guides — treat Level 30 as probable rather than certain.
How big is the mutation boost, and does it stack with Tropical Sun?
It reportedly gives +20% to FischFest 2 mutations at base, up to about +35% at max level, spread across the whole mutation pool rather than added to each one. It does combine with Tropical Sun weather, which is the recommended setup for farming Tanned and Super Tanned.
Is it “Captain Conch” or “Captain Conk”?
Same NPC. The correct name is Captain Conch; “Conk” (and variants like “Counch” or “Coch”) are just common misspellings you’ll see floating around. Look for the conch-themed quest giver on FischFest Island.
