Fishing

Fishing Skills

To begin fishing, you must learn the appropriate fishing skills. For details, see Fishing Skills.

To fish in water, you must have the base Fishing Proficiency Skill learned (i.e. the skill at the top of the fishing skill tree). The specific water type skills (Freshwater Fishing, Saltwater Fishing, and Fetid Water Fishing) will improve your chance of catching fish in the relevant water type.

To fish in lava, you must have the Lava Fishing skill learned.

The higher your fishing skills, the higher your chance of catching a fish and of catching a rare fish.

Fishing Medium

There are 4 different mediums in which you can fish: 3 water types and Lava.

The 3 water types are Freshwater, Saltwater, and Fetid Water. All types of water have the same chance of producing Salmon, Bass, Trout, and non-fish items (see "Caught Items" section in the table below). Some water fish reside in only one water type, while others may reside in multiple water types.

Lava fish can only be caught in lava.

You can only fish in water or lava that is deep enough to sustain the fish (see below).

By default, a Player Owned Town has Freshwater. However, the Governor or Steward can change the town's water type to Fetid Water by placing a Magic Gar Fetid Water Statue decoration or to Saltwater by placing a Magic Saltwater Tuna Statue decoration (the statues can be purchased in the Crown Shop).

The water in a Player Owned Town cannot be changed to Lava. However, fishable decorative lava pools can be placed in Player Owned Towns, Lots, Basements, and Player Dungeons.

How to Fish

To fish, the following criteria must be met:

• You must have the appropriate fishing skill learned
  • To fish in water, you must have the base Fishing Skill learned (i.e. the skill at the top of the fishing tree).
  • To fish in lava, you must have the Lava Fishing skill learned.
• You must have a Fishing Rod equipped.
  • To fish in water, you can use a Fishing Rod or Fishing Rod of Prosperity.
  • To fish in lava you must use either a Lava Fishing Rod or a Fishing Rod of Prosperity; however, it is best to use a Lava Fishing Rod because it provides a +10 Lava Fishing Level bonus.
• The fishing rod must not be broken (i.e. its durability cannot be zero) - if the rod is broken, repair it with a Repair Kit - Tool.
• You must be near water or lava that is deep enough to allow Fishing (see below).
• Have Bait in your inventory - To make the bait/lures more easily accessible, you can drag them from your inventory into an open slot on your Utility Bar.
  • To fish in water, you must use bait that works in water (Blood Leech, Drudge Leech, Earthworm, Herring, Hopper, Minnow, Pale Leech, Red Worm, Sardine, or Tiny Squid (Bait)).
  • To fish in lava, you must use either Gemmed Lures or Heavy Gemmed Lures as bait.

Once the above criteria are met, you can "bait your hook" by either of the following methods:

• In your inventory, either double-click on the bait/lure or right-click on it then click "Use Item" in the window that pops up.
• If you have the bait/lure on your Utility Bar, you can click on the bait/lure icon in the utility bar.

After you bait the hook, the fishing reticle will appear. Move the reticle to the desired spot on the water/lava.

If the water/lava does not allow fishing (i.e. the water/lava is too shallow to sustain fish), then the fishing reticle will appear red. If the water/lava does allow fishing (i.e. it is deep enough to sustain fish), then the fishing reticle will appear light blue.

When you have the reticle in the desired position, left-click the mouse. If the reticle was red, nothing will happen. If the reticle was light blue, then you will cast your line and begin fishing.

When you have cast your line, a timer countdown starts. You can catch a fish (or an item) at anytime during the countdown. If you do not catch something, then you can re-cast.

Optimizing Success for Fishing and for Bait Recovery

• Optimize your fishing rod - you can add a Tool Engraving Kit to regular fishing rods and to lava rods; however, the best type of engraving is probably a Tool Engraving Kit - True Bronze because it will add +5 fishing level (which ultimately increases your chance of catching a fish and your chance of catching a rare fish; see Fishing Rod with True Bronze Engravings for details).
• Optimize your bait - For fishing in water, each of the baits tends to have a bonus that helps you catch fish in a certain water type and/or helps you catch a certain type of fish. Make sure you are using bait that is optimal for the water type. For lava, Heavy Gemmed Lures probably have a higher chance to catch a fish (compared to gemmed lures) because they remove sulfurous ash from the lava loot table. See the "Bait" section in the table below for links to all the baits.
• Get the two fishing devotional buffs (Devotional of Spirituality Blessing and Devotional of Humility Blessing).
• Eat Baked Pacu
• Equip 2 rings that are appropriate for the water type or for lava (note: a crafted ring socketted with an imbued angler jewel gives the same bonus as an epic angler ring of the same type).
  • Ring of the Lava Angler or ring socketed with Imbued Jewel of the Lava Angler
  • Ring of the Freshwater Angler or ring socketed with Imbued Jewel of the Freshwater Angler
  • Pax Ring (for salt water fishing) or ring socketed with Imbued Jewel of the Saltwater Angler
  • Ring of the Fetid Water Angler or ring socketed with Imbued Jewel of the Fetid Water Angler
• Equip a necklace socketed with an appropriate jewel for the water type or lava
  • Necklace socketed with Imbued Jewel of the Lava Angler
  • Necklace socketed with Imbued Jewel of the Freshwater Angler
  • Necklace socketed with Imbued Jewel of the Saltwater Angler
  • Necklace socketed with Imbued Jewel of the Fetid Water Angler
• Equip a fishing cloak
  • Cloak of the Master Angler
  • Fish Finder Cloak
• In water, take advantage of the "higher success fishing" nodes: these nodes appear as circular ripples on the water’s surface, but they are rather scarce. Fishing in these nodes can improve your chance of success.
• If your success chance declines, move to another fishing spot - repeated casts in the same location will "deplete" the fish at that location and reduce your chance of success (although these locations will eventually "restock" themselves given time). If the success rate drops, move to a new fishing spot (you may only need to move a few meters away).
• Fish in the morning - time of day influences the chance to catch a fish. In the mornings, the chance to catch fish is highest. Second highest success is in the evening/dusk. Afternoon and night have a lower chance of success.
• Raise your Fishing Skills as high as you can!

Bait/Lure Recovery

Bait Recovery When Fishing in Water

The Water Fishing Bait Recovery Chance is the chance that you can re-use your bait (rather than consuming it) with each cast. You can increase this chance by raising the Bait Recovery fishing skill.

For more ways to increase this chance, see the equip-able items, blessings, and foods listed on the Water Fishing Bait Recovery Chance page.

Lure Recovery When Fishing in Lava

The Lava Bait Recovery Chance is the chance that you can re-use your lure (rather than consuming it) with each cast.

For ways to increase this chance, see the equip-able items listed on the Lava Bait Recovery Chance page.

What Can Be Caught with Fishing?

See the "Summary of Links to Fishing Content" table below. The following sections of the table list fish and items that can be caught.

• "Caught Items" - non-fish items that you can catch while fishing.
• "Caught Fish for Food and Trophies" - these fish can either be processed to make food (using Butchery and Cooking) or they can be crafted into decorative trophies.
• "Caught Tank Fish for Live Display" - these fish can be placed as decoration in a Fish Tank or Fish Bowl.

• 

  Saltwater Fish

• 

  Freshwater Fish

• 

  Fetid Water Fish

Things That Can Only be Caught in Specific Locations or Times

• Pacu can only be caught in 2 randomly selected Player Owned Towns (the 2 towns change daily). For details, see Pacu.
• Floating Barrel (Flotsam) can only be caught in Castle Atos.
• Aether Tetra can only be caught when the Comet is visible in the sky.

Trophy Fish

Certain fish are considered "Trophy Fish", which means that they include extra data (that shows up when you hover your mouse pointer over the fish). The extra data includes fish length, who caught the fish, and the date and scene the fish was caught in. When creating a trophy from a trophy fish, the trophy size will be scaled based on the fish length. Also, the trophy will maintain all the extra data (which shows up when you hover your mouse pointer over the trophy).

Tank Fish

These fish can be placed as decoration in a Fish Tank or Fish Bowl. For details, see Tank Fish.

Experience Point Bonus For Fishing in a Party

Fishing while in a group/party offers a bonus to Producer Experience points gained.

To qualify for the bonus, you must be grouped as a party AND be in range of your group mates.

More people in the party equates to more experience points gained from fishing.

Fishing Leaderboard

This in-game window lists the top fishing statistics.

The leaderboard window is accessed by clicking on the "Window Selector" icon in the upper right of the game window, then selecting "Leaderboard". Next, click on "Fish" on the left hand side of the window. You can rank the list using the "Rank by" drop-down box at the top of the window (select either "Number Caught" or "Largest Caught"). You can also choose the most recent time interval by clicking one of the 3 radio buttons at the top of the window (past 1 day, past 7 days, or past 30 days). You can sort the list by clicking on the column headings.