It’s that spooky time of the year, and developer Oxalis Games is marking the occasion by temporarily opening up Moonfrost Early Access for everyone to jump into for free and participate in the new Halloween event: The Dahlia Derby.

What Is Moonfrost?

Moonfrost is a free to play farming RPG that combines story-based progression with farming, crafting, and creative homebuilding gameplay. Players complete seasonal quests and take part in daily activities such as planting crops, mining, fishing, cutting trees, and clearing land. The game uses an isometric 2D perspective and includes a range of varied NPCs to interact with. Players can also build and decorate their own homes using an in-depth construction system.

The game entered Early Access on July 16 through the Open Loot Launcher, and made entry to the phase only available to holders of a Gnome Key or a Frost Hunter License NFT. Although this phase was planned to last about a month, with the exception to this event, the web3 title still continues to remain restricted to NFT holders, and no confirmed date has been given for the full free to play release. Once it launches publicly, this relaxing title will be available on the Epic Games Store as a web2-friendly game that doesn't require blockchain interaction to enjoy the core gameplay. A mobile version also in development but will likely follow the PC release at some point later on instead of releasing simultaneously.

With the release of the Early Access version, the developers concluded their previous alpha releases and introduced new content and systems compared to those earlier builds, including an expanded map, fishing, cooking, a new playable character, a village restoration feature, and an order delivery system. It also marks the introduction of the game’s optional web3 layer, supported by Open Loot, which powers the current in-game play to earn economy that will later on put the $FROST token at its core once TGE takes place, with the token launching possibly at some point in the coming months.

In early September, web3 features were finally activated, enabling players to use premium assets to earn CRYO through gameplay. CRYO is an off-chain in-game currency that will later be replaced by $FROST. It can currently be used to redeem prizes, including potential NFTs and future $FROST rewards.

While engaging with the core farming and crafting mechanics, players can also participate in limited-time events that offer additional in-game rewards. Earlier this month, it was possible to play to earn NFTs through The Hibiscus Event, but that one wasn’t free to gamers who didn’t already have access to the game. Now however, there is a lower barrier to entry, so if you’ve been wanting to try this game for a while, then this looks like a great moment to hop in and possibly earn some rewards along the way ahead of the game’s upcoming F2P launch. Let’s see how this new event works.

Exclusive Halloween Gnome, available only during the Dahlia Derby event.

What Is The Dahlia Derby (Halloween Event) in Moonfrost?

The Dahlia Derby is Moonfrost’s Halloween-themed limited-time event that runs from October 22 to November 3, 12 PM UTC. During this period, players can explore a new map, collect Dahlia Flowers, and compete on the event leaderboard for in-game and crypto rewards.

For the first time since the start of Early Access, Moonfrost is open to all players without requiring a Gnome Key. This makes the Dahlia Derby the first global event accessible to everyone through the Open Loot Launcher.

The event introduces the new Cemetery map, which becomes available after completing the “Sea Food” quest and starting the “FHA Exams” questline. Once unlocked, players can explore this new area filled with surprises and properly take part in the event.

Higher rarity FROST Tools now provide improved gathering efficiency, making them valuable for collecting Dahlia Flowers during this haunted season. Players can also encounter gnomes, some of which are reported to drop larger quantities of flowers, with drop rates improving based on the rarity of the gnome.

Leaderboard rewards include a shared prize pool of $1000 USDC for the top 25 players, alongside NFTs, Liquid Luck, and Gacha Tokens. Additional prizes are distributed among the top 50, 100, and 500 players, with the top 500 receiving the exclusive Halloween Gnome that will only be available during this event.

Existing players should update their game to the latest build on which anyone can start collecting Dahlia Flowers in the Cemetery for free to compete for various rewards before the event closes on November 3.

How to Play and Earn in Moonfrost’s Halloween Event

Anyone has a chance to play and earn USDC, NFTs, and more as leaderboard rewards by collecting as many Dahlia Flowers as possible during Moonfrost’s F2P Halloween event, running from October 22 to November 3, 12 PM UTC.

To join this event referred to as the Dahlia Derby, players need to open the Events menu in-game and select Participate. This step is required, as flowers gathered before joining will not count toward the leaderboard total. Once registered, the main objective is to collect Dahlia Flowers as well as by planting different types of Dahlia Seeds and getting more flowers from gnomes across the Cemetery. You’ll ideally want to use FROST Tools, as those allow you to earn Dahlia Flowers from all gameplay activities such as fishing, mining, and woodcutting. Learn more about crafting FROST Tools in our piece on how to play and earn in Moonfrost Early Access.

Completing the “Sea Food” quest and beginning “FHA Exams” grants access to the Cemetery map, where players can find most event-related materials and compete for higher rankings. The rarity of a player’s FROST Tools and gnomes will affect the number of Dahlia Flowers gathered, with rare tools and gnomes offering the best returns.

Your goal in the Cemetery is to repair it using a variety of in-game resources before crafting the Cauldron, fully completing the event questline and unlocking the ability to craft the Scarecrow Gnome. You can craft up to 5 Scarecrow Gnomes and place them in your farm, clicking on them to earn more Dahlia Flowers.

The Dahlia Derby is the first Moonfrost event open to all players since Early Access launch. It’s not stated if the game will remain open after the event is over, or when might it be available like this again, but until that info arises, you can get started for free by downloading the game through the Open Loot Launcher on PC and try to play and earn in this Halloween event that runs until November 3, 12 PM UTC.