Fishing Strategy: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 23:54, 15 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.

Casting Distance

Since the quality of the fish you catch depends on casting distance, 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.

To cast into bubbles, you do not have many options about how far you cast, but bubbles increase your distance by 1 tile over the same spot without bubbles, 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, distance also affects the chances of catching certain fish over other ones. While all fish can be caught in tiles that have a distance of 1, a lot of the "better" fish have a higher chance to be caught the further away from land you go.

Distance Images

The following images show the distance from land for all fishing spots, color coded as:

The Farm

Standard Farm	Riverland Farm

Forest Farm	Hill-top Farm

Wilderness Farm	Four Corners Farm

Pelican Town	Cindersap Forest

The Beach	The Mountains

The Desert	The Sewers

The Mines	The Secret Woods
Mine floors 20, 60, & 100
Night Market The submarine ride at the Night Market Mutant Bug Lair	Witch's Swamp

Fish Locations

A fishing spot is not divided by ocean, lake and river, but by map. For instance, the river in Cindersap Forest is not the same as the river in Pelican Town.

Note that the 5 legendary fish are not included in the tables below. The following tables are based on the data in Content\Locations.xnb.

Pelican Town

	Time
Spring	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1
Sunfish	Sunny day only
Catfish	Rainy day only
Green Algae
Smallmouth Bass
Shad				Rainy day only
Bream
Summer	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1
Rainbow Trout	Sunny day only
Sunfish	Sunny day only
Green Algae
Pike
Shad				Rainy day only
Bream
Fall	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1
Salmon
Tiger Trout
Catfish	Rainy day only
Green Algae
Smallmouth Bass
Shad				Rainy day only
Walleye							Rainy day only
Bream
Winter	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1
Tiger Trout
Green Algae
Lingcod
Perch
Pike
Bream

The Beach

	Time
Spring	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1
Sardine
Flounder
Anchovy
Herring
Seaweed
Halibut
Eel											Rainy day only
Summer	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1
Octopus
Tilapia
Red Mullet
Red Snapper	Rainy day only
Tuna
Flounder
Seaweed
Halibut
Pufferfish							Sunny day only
Super Cucumber
Fall	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1
Tilapia
Red Snapper	Rainy day only
Sardine
Sea Cucumber
Anchovy
Seaweed
Albacore
Eel											Rainy day only
Super Cucumber
Winter	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1
Red Mullet
Sardine
Sea Cucumber
Tuna
Herring
Red Snapper	Rainy day only
Seaweed
Albacore
Halibut
Squid

Cindersap Forest

Note that there are three fishing spots in the forest: the pond in the middle, and the river and waterfalls to the south.

		Time
Spring		6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1
Sunfish	River	Sunny day only
Catfish	River	Rainy day only
Chub	River
Green Algae	River/Pond
Smallmouth Bass	Pond
Shad	River				Rainy day only
Bream	River
Goby	Waterfall
Summer		6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1
Dorado	River
Rainbow Trout	River	Sunny day only
Sunfish	River	Sunny day only
Chub	River
Green Algae	River/Pond
Pike	River/Pond
Shad	River				Rainy day only
Bream	River
Goby	Waterfall
Fall		6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1
Salmon	River
Tiger Trout	River
Catfish	River	Rainy day only
Chub	River
Midnight Carp	Pond
Green Algae	River/Pond
Smallmouth Bass	Pond
Shad	River				Rainy day only
Walleye	River/Pond							Rainy day only
Bream	River
Salmon	River/Waterfall
Goby	Waterfall
Winter		6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1
Tiger Trout	River
Chub	River
Midnight Carp	Pond
Green Algae	River/Pond
Lingcod	River
Perch	River/Pond
Pike	River/Pond
Bream	River
Goby	Waterfall

The Mountain

Note that this refers to the lake outside of The Mines.

	Time
Spring	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1
Largemouth Bass
Bullhead
Carp
Chub
Green Algae
Summer	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1
Largemouth Bass
Rainbow Trout	Sunny day only
Sturgeon
Bullhead
Carp
Chub
Green Algae
Fall	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1
Largemouth Bass
Bullhead
Carp
Chub
Green Algae
Walleye							Rainy day only
Midnight Carp
Winter	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1
Largemouth Bass
Sturgeon
Bullhead
Chub
Green Algae
Lingcod
Perch
Midnight Carp

The Mines

		Time
All		6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1
Ghostfish	Floors 20, 60
Stonefish	Floor 20
Green Algae	All
White Algae	All
Ice Pip	Floor 60
Lava Eel	Floor 100

Secret Woods

	Time
All	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1
Carp
Woodskip
Catfish	Rainy day only

The Desert

	Time
All	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1
Sandfish
Scorpion Carp
Green Algae

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 single Legendary Fish, the Mutant Carp). Therefore, every cast of the line results in either an immediate item reward or a quick Carp catch. This makes the Sewers an ideal place to fish for treasure since Carp are unlikely to escape. Since carp and algae are the only possible non-treasure catches, your inventory will not become clogged with other fish, unlike at locations with more diverse fish stocks.

	Time
All	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1
Carp
Green Algae
White Algae

Mutant Bug Lair

Through the sewers. Can only be accessed end-game, after picking up the quest Dark Talisman.

	Time
All	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1
Carp
Slimejack
Green Algae
White Algae

Witch's Swamp

Through the cave behind the train platform. Can only be accessed end-game, after completing the quest Dark Talisman.

	Time
All	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	1
Void Salmon
Catfish	Rainy day only
Green Algae
White Algae

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).

@@ Line 11: / Line 11: @@
 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===
+===Casting Distance===
-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 [[Fishing#Casting Distance|Casting Distance]].)
+Since the quality of the fish you catch depends on casting distance, 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.
-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.
+To cast into bubbles, you do not have many options about how far you cast, but bubbles increase your distance by 1 tile over the same spot without bubbles, 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.
+In addition to affecting the quality of the fish, distance also affects the chances of catching certain fish over other ones. While all fish can be caught in tiles that have a distance of 1, a lot of the "better" fish have a higher chance to be caught the further away from land you go.
-==Fishing Seasons==
+==Distance Images==
-===Summer===
+The following images show the distance from land for all fishing spots, color coded as:
-:[[File:Fish in summer.png|400px]]
+[[File:DistanceKey.png]]
-===Fall / Winter===
-:[[File:Fish Focus Walleye.png|400px]]
-===Winter===
-:[[File:Fish in winter.png|400px]]
-==Fish Infograph==
-:''Note that this graph is accurate as of [[Version History#1.3|v1.3]], but not complete (it does not include the [[Mutant Bug Lair]], [[Witch's Swamp]], [[Night Market]] fish or the [[Cindersap Forest]] pond).''
-[[File:The Ultimate Fishing Infograph.png|1000px]]
-==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.
+===[[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]]
+|-
+|
 ===[[Pelican Town]]===
-*Below the path at the west side of [[1 Willow Lane|Jodi's house]].
+|
-:<div style="float: left; margin-right: 12px;">[[File:Optimal Fishing Location - Jodi's House 1.PNG|310px]]</div> <div style="float: left;">{{map|200|140}}</div>{{Clear}}
+===[[Cindersap Forest]]===
+|-
+|style="vertical-align: top;"|[[File:TownDistances.png|thumb|left]]
+|[[File:ForestDistances.png|thumb|left]]
+|-
+|
 ===[[The Beach]]===
-*Western pier. Cast near the rock.
+|
-:[[File:Optimal Fishing Location - Beach West Pier.jpg|360px]]<br><br>
-*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.
-:[[File:Optimal Fishing Location - Beach River Mouth.jpg|360px]]<br><br>
-*Eastern pier (across the repaired bridge). Cast down or left at the end of the dock.
-:[[File:Optimal Fishing Location - Beach East Pier 1.jpg|360px]] [[File:Optimal Fishing Location - Beach East Pier 2.jpg|360px]]
-===[[Cindersap Forest]]===
-*Below and six tiles to the west of [[Leah's Cottage|Leah's door]].
-:<div style="float: left; margin-right: 12px;">[[File:Optimal Fishing Location - Leah's House.PNG|310px]]</div><div style="float: left;">{{map|150|134}}</div>
-{{Clear}}
-*Island near the [[Abandoned House|hat shop]].
-:[[File:Optimal Fishing Location - Forest River.PNG|280px]] [[File:Optimal Fishing Location - Forest River 2.jpg|400px]]
-:<div style="margin-top: 8px;">{{map|96|170}}</div>
 ===[[The Mountain]]s===
-*Southeast edge of the fence past [[Carpenter's Shop|Robin's house]].<br>
+|-
-*Southern tip of the second island, also accessible from the area near the broken bridge to the east.
+|[[File:BeachDistances.png|thumb|left]]
-:[[File:Optimal Fishing Location - Mountain Lake.jpg|360px]]
+|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|The Secret Woods]]===
+|-
+|style="vertical-align: top;"|[[File:MinesDistances.png|thumb|left|Mine floors 20, 60, & 100]]
+|[[File:SecretWoodsDistances.png|thumb|left]]
+|-
+|
+===[[Night Market]]===
+[[File:SubmarineDistances.png|thumb|left|The submarine ride at the [[Night Market]]]]{{Clear}}
+===[[Mutant Bug Lair]]===
+[[File:MutantBugLairDistances.png|thumb|left]]
+|style="vertical-align: top;"|
+===[[Witch's Swamp]]===
+[[File:SwampDistances.png|thumb|left]]
+|-
+|}
-==Access to Standard Fish==
+==Fish Locations==
-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.
+A fishing spot is not divided by ocean, lake and river, but by map. For instance, the river in [[Cindersap Forest]] is not the same as the river in [[Pelican Town]].
-Note that the 5 legendary fish are not included in the tables below.
+Note that the 5 legendary fish are not included in the tables below.  The following tables are based on the data in <tt>Content\Locations.xnb</tt>.
-The following tables are based on the ''Locations.xnb'' file:
 ===[[Pelican Town]]===
@@ Line 82: / Line 103: @@
 {{FishLocations Mountain}}
-==Access to Special Fish==
 ===[[The Mines]]===
 {{FishLocations Mines}}
 ===[[Secret Woods]]===
-Northwest of[[ Cindersap Forest]].
-:''Note: [[Catfish]] can not be found here in [[winter]].''
 {{FishLocations Secret Woods}}
@@ Line 105: / Line 123: @@
 Through the cave behind [[Railroad|the train platform]]. Can only be accessed end-game, after completing the quest [[Quests#Dark Talisman|Dark Talisman]].
 {{FishLocations Witch's Swamp}}
+==Fish Infograph==
+''Note that this graph is accurate as of [[Version History#1.3|v1.3]], but not complete (it does not include the [[Mutant Bug Lair]], [[Witch's Swamp]], [[Night Market]] fish or the [[Cindersap Forest]] pond).''
+[[File:The Ultimate Fishing Infograph.png|1000px]]
 [[Category:Gameplay]]