Stratagies on how to make bee boxes early?

[minespatch]

I'd like to learn how to make bee boxes without much worry, any strategies on how I can make them?

[Donke60]

3 hours ago, minespatch said:

I'd like to learn how to make bee boxes without much worry, any strategies on how I can make them?

I guess the fastest ways would be get pigman to target the beehives then as the bees are distracted, break the nests till you have enough for the boxes you want to make than with a bug net get the honey bees.

[alainmcd]

Dig up graves for a blue gem, craft an ice staff, ignite and extinguish a bee hive so it releases its bees without aggroing on you, whack the hive.

In SW, you can dig magma rocks or trawl in deep water - since you need minerals and you'll probably want to Quacken rush, you're not really going out of your way, but it does rely on a bit of luck. If you don't get an ice staff, you can just hit a bee and lead the swarm far enough from the hive so you have time to destroy it while they're on their way back, there are rarely many hives close together.

If my math is correct, there's a ~17% chance of finding a blue gem in a grave (9/10 of not spawning a ghost * 1/2 of not spawning a trinket * 5/13 of being a blue gem) and ~3% from a magma pile (magma piles yield 6-9 minerals, 7.5 on average, a mineral has 2/503 chances (≈ 0.4%) of being a blue gem; same chances for regular and gold magma piles), and ~30% to find at least one blue gem or ice staff for each full trawl net when trawling in deep water during the mild or green seasons (2/101 for blue gem + 2/101 for ice staff per loot, 9 loots per net).

Pet giants (Deerclops and Bearger) also do the job, but aren't available as early.

Bonus: found a couple of bugs.

[minespatch]

So it's just like getting materials for pigman houses. Thanks buddies.