Difference between revisions of "Fishing Strategy"

Revision as of 18:02, 8 July 2020

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.

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 your fishing location to current conditions as necessary in order to give yourself the chance to catch the type(s) of fish you want.

Below Fishing skill level 4, casting left or right gives you an opportunity to get a higher quality catch than casting up or down, because the maximum casting distance is greater.

Depth

Water depth refers to distance from land (any walkable area), not to distance beneath the water surface. Since the quality of the fish you catch depends on depth, you ideally want to cast your bobber as far from land as you can. It is worth noting that the color of the water and the particular fishing spot have no effect on fish quality at all. Only the bobber's depth when you make a catch matters. (For more information, see Casting Distance.)

To cast into bubbles, you do not have many options about how far you cast, but bubbles increase your depth and may thus increase fish quality, or at least restore what is lost by a shorter cast, while still providing the quick bite feature of bubbles.

In addition to affecting the quality of the fish, depth also affects the chances of catching certain fish over other ones. While all fish can be caught in tiles that have a depth of 1, a lot of the "better" fish have a higher chance to be caught the further away from land you go.

Fishing Seasons

Fish Infograph

Note that this graph is accurate as of v1.3, but not complete (it does not include the Mutant Bug Lair, Witch's Swamp, Night Market fish or the Cindersap Forest pond).

Prime Fishing Locations

Below are some suggested prime fishing locations, which have ample depth in which to catch the best quality fish. Some of these are also locations where you can catch legendary fish.

Pelican Town

Below the path at the west side of Jodi's house.

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The Beach

Western pier. Cast near the rock.

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Where the river meets the ocean (in the middle of the river mouth triangle). Cast at an angle into the dark blue water from either side.

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Eastern pier (across the repaired bridge). Cast down or left at the end of the dock.

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Cindersap Forest

Below and six tiles to the west of Leah's door.

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Island near the hat shop.

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The Mountains

Southeast edge of the fence past Robin's house.
Southern tip of the second island, also accessible from the area near the broken bridge to the east.

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Access to Standard Fish

According to the game file, a fishing spot is not divided by ocean, lake and river, but by the maps. For instance, the river south of Leah's house is not the same as the river in town.

Note that the 5 legendary fish are not included in the tables below.

The following tables are based on the Locations.xnb file: