TANUKI: Pon’s Summer Stonemason Skill – How Pon Learns It

Pon learns the stonemason skill from a local stonemason in the town across the bay, a second island area the developers detailed in their December 2025 progress report on the official Steam page. Learning a "respectable skill from a local stonemason" is listed alongside helping a local business stay afloat as one of the new activities that town offers. The report also explains the general rule for all skills: more and more people are willing to teach Pon, but the effort will have to be all his.

How skill learning works

The developer's progress report describes skill learning as a growing system built around the locals themselves. Points confirmed there:

• People around the island are willing to teach Pon new skills, and the number of skills keeps growing during development.
• The teaching is only the start; the player has to put in the effort, which fits the game's loop of working jobs to fund the shrine.
• Skills range from physical labor to hobbies: the announcement names rolling giant boulders and operating heavy machinery as examples, alongside quieter pursuits like insect collecting and fishing.
• The stonemason specifically lives in the new town across the bay, reached by a short train ride once you are comfortable with the starting island's forest area.

That new town is described as a rocky mountainside place with windier paths and trickier rails, so expect some BMX handling between you and your lesson.

What is not known yet

TANUKI: Pon's Summer launches on November 10, 2026, so no player has documented the actual stonemason quest: his exact location in the town, the tasks he assigns, rewards, or whether stonemasonry feeds directly into shrine restoration. The current demo covers only the opening arc on the first island and does not include the town across the bay, so you cannot meet the stonemason early by playing it. This page will be updated with a proper walkthrough once the full game is out.

Next steps

• The shrine restoration guide covers the main goal that skills like stonemasonry are likely to support.
• The mail delivery guide explains the core money-earning loop you will rely on while learning skills.

FAQ

Where is the stonemason?

In the town across the bay, the second island area added during development. You reach it by train after getting used to the starting island.

Do I need to finish the demo first?

No. The demo covers only the game's opening chapter and does not reach the town across the bay at all.

Does stonemasonry help rebuild the shrine?

The developer has not confirmed exactly what the skill unlocks, though the shrine rebuild is the game's central goal and skills are framed as part of Pon's work toward it.

Which platforms can I play on?

The official Steam page lists Windows as the available platform, and the October 2026 release announcement adds PlayStation, with preorders open on Xbox and Nintendo Switch 1 and 2.

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Checked on 2026-11-05 against the official Steam store page and the developer's Release Date Shift & Progress Report announcement there. The stonemason's exact quest steps remain unconfirmed until the full game releases on November 10, 2026.