The Mindless Violins quest is initiated by talking to the NPC Midnight Breeze in Ponydale, near the schoolhouse. Midnight had lent her violin to Astral Charm to conduct an experiment a while ago, and was expecting her to return the violin. Despite having sent a package containing Midnight's violin back, the package has not reached Midnight after 22 hours, causing her to grow nervous and anxious about the upcoming concert at the gala.
Prerequisites[]
The player must have graduated to obtain this quest.
Starting the quest[]
The quest can be started by speaking to Midnight Breeze, who can be found near the schoolhouse within Ponydale. She will say that she has been expecting a package to be delivered from Astral Charm, through Swift, for 22 hours. She then asks the player to speak to Astral in Cantermore about the package.
Journal: Seek Astral in Cantermore to find out where Midnight's package is.
- Talk to Astral.
Astral's frustration[]
As Astral is already frustrated with the experiment that she had to do with Midnight's violin, she tells the player that the missing package is not her problem, and that they should see Swift to discuss the issue. Upon further probing, the experiment is revealed to be about bees' reaction to music.
Journal: Swift should be somewhere in the Heartlands.
- Talk to Swift.
Swift and Olga[]
Upon approaching Swift, in Midway Village, the player overhears a conversation about how Swift crash landed onto Olga Ulfstig due to a sprained wing. The package was left behind with Pyrite, who was with the duo exploring. However, due to Swift's condition, the player has to get medical supplies from the nearest hospital quickly before pursuing the package.
Journal: Find Mercury and get medicine for Swift and Olga.
- Talk to Mercury.
Ponydale Hospital[]
Olga tells the player to ask Mercury in Ponydale for supplies. Mercury passes the player the Medical Supplies that Swift needs, but also tells the player to advise them to see her immediately to check for further injuries.
Journal: Return to Swift and Olga with the medical supplies.
- Talk to Swift again.
After speaking with swift:
Journal:
Find Pyrite and get the package!
- Talk to Pyrite.
Pyrite the archeologist[]
Once the player has passed the supplies to Swift and Olga, the latter then reveals that Pyrite is located along the path to Cloudopolis in The Heartlands. The player finds Pyrite to be an eccentric pony who constantly gets distracted about the ruins of Athmanes. Amidst his rambling, Pyrite gives the player a package without telling them what the package is, or who the package is for. Without any further leads, the player just has to pass the package to Midnight and hope that it's her violin.
Journal: Deliver the package to Midnight.
- Talk to Midnight again.
An old statuette[]
Upon receiving the package, Midnight opens it to find a statuette. She ponders what could have gone wrong, before suggesting that the player should check with Astral as to whether she sent the wrong package all along.
Journal: Go ask Astral about the package!
- Talk to Astral again.
Pyrite's carelessness[]
Astral is not very happy to see the player again, but quickly becomes concerned about the statuette. She affirms that she did send the correct package containing the violin, and it was Pyrite who mixed them up.
Journal: Back to Pyrite to get some answers (and hopefully the right package).
- Talk to Pyrite again.
When the player confronts Pyrite about it, he becomes distracted yet again, asking if there was anything interesting that the player discovered about the statuette. Eventually once the player reminds him about the missing package, he will finally give it to them.
- BUG: At this point in the quest, should the player choose to ask Pyrite about the statuette's origins and answer no when asked if they've finished helping Midnight, the dialogue acts as if the quest was completed and activates the It Belongs in a Museum quest. However, that quest cannot be advanced until Mindless Violins has been completed.
Journal: Get the package back from Swift.
- Speak with Swift a third time.
Swift's obligations[]
Finding Swift and Olga at Midway Village once more, Swift says that the package will take a few days longer to deliver since they will be walking. The player offers to help deliver the package sooner, but Swift insists that she has to fulfill her duty of delivering Midnight's package. Olga agrees with Swift, and the two request that the player inform Midnight that her package will arrive a bit later.
Journal: Tell Midnight the bad news
- Speak with Midnight a third time.
When Midnight learns about the situation, she frets over not having enough time to prepare for the concert, and asks if the player can speak to Hullabaloo in Cantermore to delay the gala.
Journal: See if Hullabaloo will move the party date back.
- Talk to Hullabaloo.
Delaying the gala[]
As many months have went into planning the gala, Hullabaloo says that it cannot be pushed back. However, since catering is a large component of the gala, he suggests talking to Flan and the Paso Fino Cafe to reschedule the catering.
Journal: Find out if Flan can change catering.
- Talk to Flan.
Flan explains to the player that the catering time depends on when Spud ships his crops, so she might not be able to change it without his cooperation.
Journal: Check to see if Spud at Sweet Apple Orchard will hold off shipping.
- Talk to Spud.
The player travels to Sweet Apple Orchard to discuss the matter with Spud, but he states that the carrots being sent to Flan won't be in good condition if he were to delay the shipment.
Journal: Return to Midnight with the bad news.
- Speak with Midnight yet again.
Midnight's distress[]
With no luck on the delay, the player heads back to Midnight to explain to her the situation. She's not too happy to see the player without her violin, however, and begins to show signs of snapping, pestering the player for her violin.
Journal: Go to Swift and get the package back!
- Speak with Swift yet again.
Noticing her distress, the player quickly heads back to Swift to urgently request the package. This time, Swift relents and gives Midnight's package to the player, which they then hurriedly deliver back to Midnight.
Journal: At last! Return Midnight's Violin to her.
- Converse with Midnight for the fifth time.
Returning the violin[]
Once Midnight Breeze receives the violin, she expresses her delight, and tips the player 500 bits, which was originally intended for Swift. Midnight Breeze tells the player to convey to Astral the good news.
Journal: Midnight has her violin back. Check to make sure that everything is fine with Astral.
- Speak with Astral a third time.
Astral doesn't seem to care much about the package's delivery, but gives the player an old pair of socks anyway, saying that it should be taken more of an insult for getting her involved in the situation, rather than a reward.
Journal: Midnight's violin has been returned and all is well.
Quest rewards[]
- 500 bits
- Argyle Socks for front & back legs
- 700 experience in all talents
Trivia[]
- The name of the quest may possibly be a play on the TV Trope Senseless Violins. It's also likely a pun on the term "mindless violence."
- This is the only NPC to give out Argyle Socks as an award.
- Previously, the quest would have Pyrite award a Cat Egg upon completing the statue portion of the quest. As of the Open Access Release that is no longer the case, as the aforementioned reward is now instead available through the It Belongs in a Museum quest that can only be started once the player has the statue in their possession.