OP here, just dropping into this thread again to remind everyone (including myself) that it's almost that time of the year again:
July 24 is just around the corner!
Time to prepare for my annual Bard-killing spree on Party Day, a.k.a. Baby Day.
I've been grinding a bit for the past few days in preparation for the event.
Mining is an easy way to get XP, gems and money at the same time (if a bit tedious). My MC's stomach mutation ensures that he's never in danger of starving while mining (or any other sort of grinding, for that matter), but it's still important to have tons of food on hand for the benefits of raising everyone's Potential, and gaining seeds (which my Cute Fairy ally produces as regularly as he eats).
Thankfully, my large home collection of fruit trees (which I've accumulated mostly from city quest instances, as explained in >>298491 ) ensures that I'm never short on food.
P.S.
One of the most important things to do in preparation for "Baby Day" is to safely store most of your gold at home (that's where the "kitty bank" items come in handy), because Bards have the ability to suck out whatever gold you have on hand.