View source for Fishing Strategy

{{TOC right|npt=y}}
:''For a list of fish and their locations, see [[Fish]].''
:''For information about the Fishing Skill and Mechanics, see [[Fishing]].''
:''For an index to the completed fish collection, see [[Collections#Fish|Collections]].''
:''See also: [[Tackle]], [[Bait]]''
This page provides '''fishing strategy''' information for [[Stardew Valley]].

==Basics of Strategy==
The availability of many types of fish can depend on various factors: the location of the fishing spot, the season, the time of day, and the weather. Match the fishing location to current conditions as necessary to get a chance to catch certain type(s) of fish.

===Locations===
Fishing spots are commonly broken up into ocean, lake, and river types. However, while most fishing spots in a similar body of water will share catches, the map also plays a role. For instance, the river in [[Cindersap Forest]] is not the same as the river in [[Pelican Town]]. Ponds usually have a smaller selection of fish, if any, compared to larger bodies of water and the selection is usually specific to the map where the pond is found. Note that generally, the less fish there are in a certain location, the more likely it is that [[trash]] will be caught.

'''The Sewers'''

[[The Sewers]] are an easy and productive fishing location, especially to level up the fishing skill or farm treasure. [[Carp]] is the least difficult fish to catch in the game and it is the only fish in the sewers (except for a [[Mutant Carp|legendary fish]]). Therefore, almost every cast of the line results in either an immediate item reward or a quick Carp catch.

===Bobber Position===
In general, it is optimal to cast the bobber as far from land as possible to maximize the [[Fishing#Fishing Zone|Fishing Zone]]. Longer casting distances are important, but also casting east/west instead of north/south can improve the fishing zone, as can fishing in wide-open water. In addition to affecting the quality of the fish, Fishing Zone also affects the chances of catching certain fish over other ones. While all non-Legendary fish can be caught in tiles that have a zone of 1, a lot of the more difficult and profitable fish have a higher chance to be caught at higher-zone locations.

[[Fishing#Bubbles|Bubbles]] greatly increase the rate at which fish bite and can also alter the relative chances of each fish type at the location.  Careful placement of the bobber on the edge of the bubbles allows the bubble bonus to be used in any of the adjacent tiles, providing some ability to optimize the Fishing Zone.

===Fishing Skill===
Fishing level is important because each increase in the fishing level increases the fishing bar size by 8 pixels. The longer the fishing bar is, the easier it is to catch fish. The fishing bar will continue to increase by this amount even as the player goes beyond level 10 (with [[buffs]]). This means the bar can get much bigger than it naturally would be even at fishing level 10. Using a fishing rod with the [[Forge#Tool enchantments|Master enchant]] will also increase the fishing bar size by 8 pixels. Each [[Cork Bobber]] used will increase the fishing bar size by 24 pixels. Using [[Deluxe Bait]] increases the fishing bar size by 12 pixels.

===Catching Difficult Fish===
This concept of the fishing bar getting bigger is especially useful when trying to catch extremely hard fish such as the [[Fish#Legendary Fish|Legendary Fish]] and the [[Octopus]]. Reaching Fishing level 10, using an iridium rod with a [[Cork Bobber]] and with the Master enchant, and eating food (better prepared with [[Qi Seasoning]]) that provides a temporary fishing [[Buffs|buff]] ('''e.g.,''' [[Seafoam Pudding]]) will all help make catching these difficult fish much more manageable.

The [[Trap Bobber]] is also a great combination with a large fishing bar, as it significantly reduces the speed at which difficult fish escape. The [[Statue Of Blessings#Blessing Of Waters|Blessing Of Waters]] can also be used to make catching the fish easier, as it decreases the difficulty of Legendary Fish by 25% and non-Legendary Fish (except [[Carp]]) by 50% and causes the progress bar to decrease 50% slower when the fish isn't being reeled in.

==Fishing Zones==
The following images show the [[Fishing#Fishing Zone|Fishing Zone]] based on the location where the bobber lands, color coded as:
[[File:DistanceKey.png]]

Note that these maps are not valid on iOS and Android because of a [[Fishing#Bugs|bug]].

===[[The Farm]]===
{|
|-
|'''Standard Farm'''
|'''Riverland Farm'''
|-
|[[File:StandardFarmDistances.png|thumb|left]]
|[[File:RiverlandFarmDistances.png|thumb|left]]
|-
|'''Forest Farm'''
|'''Hill-top Farm'''
|-
|[[File:ForestFarmDistances.png|thumb|left]]
|[[File:Hill-topFarmDistances.png|thumb|left]]
|-
|'''Wilderness Farm'''
|'''Four Corners Farm'''
|-
|style="vertical-align: top;"|[[File:WildernessFarmDistances.png|thumb|left]]
|[[File:4CornersFarmDistances.png|thumb|left]]
|-
|'''Beach Farm'''
|'''Meadowlands Farm'''
|-
|[[File:BeachFarmDistances.png|thumb|left]]
|[[File:Farm RanchingDistances.png|thumb|left]]
|-
|

===[[Pelican Town]]===
|
===[[Cindersap Forest]]===
|-
|style="vertical-align: top;"|[[File:TownDistances.png|thumb|left]]
|[[File:ForestDistances.png|thumb|left]]
|-
|
===[[The Beach]]===
|
===[[The Mountain]]===
|-
|[[File:BeachDistances.png|thumb|left]]
|style="vertical-align: top;"|[[File:MountainDistances.png|thumb|left]]
|-
|
===[[The Desert]]===
|
===[[The Sewers]]===
|-
|[[File:DesertDistances.png|thumb|left]]
|[[File:SewerDistances.png|thumb|left]]
|-
|
===[[The Mines]]===
|
===[[Secret Woods]]===
|-
|style="vertical-align: top;"|[[File:MinesDistances.png|thumb|left|Mine floors 20, 60, & 100]]
|[[File:SecretWoodsDistances.png|thumb|left]]
|-
|
===[[Night Market]]===
|
===[[Mutant Bug Lair]]===
|-
|style="vertical-align: top;"|[[File:SubmarineDistances.png|thumb|left|The submarine ride at the [[Night Market]]]]{{Clear}}
|[[File:MutantBugLairDistances.png|thumb|left]]
|style="vertical-align: top;"|
|-
|
===[[Witch's Swamp]]===
|
===[[Ginger Island#Island South|Island South]]===
|-
|style="vertical-align: top;"|[[File:SwampDistances.png|thumb|left]]
|[[File:IslandSouthDistances.png|thumb|left]]
|-
|
===[[Ginger Island#Island North|Island North]]===
|
===[[Ginger Island#Island West|Island West]]===
|-
|[[File:IslandNorthDistances.png|thumb|left]]
|style="vertical-align: top;"|[[File:IslandWestDistances.png|thumb|left]]
|-
|
===[[Ginger Island#Island Southeast|Island Southeast]]===
|
===[[Ginger Island#Pirate Cove|Pirate Cove]]===
|-
|[[File:IslandSouthEastDistances.png|thumb|left]]
|style="vertical-align: top;"|[[File:IslandCaveDistances.png|thumb|left]]
|-
|
===[[Forge|Caldera]]===
|
|-
|[[File:CalderaDistances.png|thumb|left]]
|-
|
|}

==Location Tables==
{{Stub|Update to 1.6, include the new fish and locations, and include the 5 Legendary Fish as they are now in Data\Locations.xnb}}
Note that the 5 legendary fish are not included in the tables below. The following tables are based on <samp>Data\Locations.xnb</samp> in the game files.

===[[Pelican Town]]===
{{FishLocations Town}}

===[[The Beach]]===
{{FishLocations Beach}}

===[[Cindersap Forest]]===
{{FishLocations Forest}}

===[[The Mountain]]===
{{FishLocations Mountain}}

===[[The Mines]]===
{{FishLocations Mines}}

===[[Secret Woods]]===
{{FishLocations Secret Woods}}

===[[The Desert]]===
{{FishLocations Desert}}

===[[The Sewers]]===
{{FishLocations Sewers}}

===[[Mutant Bug Lair]]===
{{FishLocations Mutant Bug Lair}}

===[[Witch's Swamp]]===
{{FishLocations Witch's Swamp}}

===[[Ginger Island]] North===
{{FishLocations IslandN}}

===[[Ginger Island]] South & Southeast===
{{FishLocations IslandSSE}}

===Pirate Cove===
{{FishLocations IslandSECave}}

===[[Ginger Island]] West===
{{FishLocations IslandW}}

==Fish Infograph==
Note that the only difference between the two images is the background.
[[File:Fishing Infograph Night.png|thumb|left|Night background]]
[[File:Fishing Infograph Day.png|thumb|left|Day background]]

[[Category:Gameplay]]

[[de:Fischen Strategie]]
[[es:Guía de Pesca]]
[[fr:Stratégie de pêche]]
[[it:Strategia di pesca]]
[[ja:釣りの戦略]]
[[ko:낚시 전략]]
[[hu:Halászati stratégiák]]
[[pt:Estratégia de pesca]]
[[ru:Стратегия рыболовства]]
[[tr:Balıkçılık Stratejisi]]
[[zh:钓鱼攻略]]