Fishing
Recruit's course: relaxation, income and bonuses
"Lord, send us fish both big and small!" - A fisherman's prayer
A new player always has lots of questions. How to control a character and how to fight, they quickly figure out on their own, but some questions can only be answered through long experimentation. Fishing is one of them. It is not just a way to take a break from tedious leveling or to pass the time while waiting for a suitable party, but also a way to make money and get various bonuses.
Gear and skills
For fishing you need a fishing rod (Fishing Pole) and bait (Bait/Lure). They are sold by Fishermen Guild Members, found in the Grocery Store or at the harbor of every town.
You also need to learn 4 skills:
- Fishing - lets you fish.
- Fishing Mastery - lets you hook stronger fish.
- Reeling and Pumping - give you a chance to land a hooked fish.
The skills are learned from the Fishermen Guild Member for regular adena; the higher the skill level, the more it costs.
Tip from experienced anglers: the levels of Fishing Mastery, Reeling and Pumping should not differ by more than 2, or your chances of catching fish will be much lower.
Where to fish
You can fish only where your character gets a breath bar, and also in the geysers of Goddard Hot Springs. Look for less crowded spots: fish quickly stop biting on a particular bait. For the same reason you will have to change spots often.
The catching process
- Put the Fishing, Reeling and Pumping skills (active skills tab) on your shortcut bar - you will need the last two while catching.
- Equip the rod and hold bait in your other hand. Walk up to the water's edge and use Fishing. The fishing window opens with a float.
- If a fish bites, the window shows the fish's HP bar (starting at 50%) and a timer.
- Your task is to bring the fish's HP to zero before the timer runs out by alternating Reeling and Pumping correctly.
According to the anglers' manual, use Pumping when the fish tires and stops thrashing, and Reeling when the fish fights and tries to break free. Beginners are advised to use the beginner's lure (Lure for Beginners): with it the game hints at which skill to use when.
- Using Reeling or Pumping in advance, before a bite, is pointless.
- A correct skill use takes away some of the fish's HP. An incorrect one increases the fish's HP bar significantly.
- Any use (correct or not) has a chance to fail - then the HP bar does not change.
Tip from experienced anglers: don't watch the float - it is just for show. Watch the fish's HP bar: use Pumping when it holds still, and Reeling when it starts to grow.
The fishing window closes in 5 cases:
- you used Fishing again (no bites today);
- no fish bit within 30 seconds (they were biting yesterday);
- the catch timer ran out;
- the fish's HP bar reached the maximum (it got away);
- you brought the fish's HP to zero (you won't escape us).
Catch and rewards
If you brought the fish's HP to zero in time, you get a fish (Fish), a treasure chest (Treasure Chest) or a nasty surprise - a monster of your level. Keep your weapon handy!
- Double-clicking a fish either makes it fall apart (failure) or gives items used to craft common goods: accessories, potions, dyes.
- Chests usually contain parts for crafting common items.
- Fish and chests can also yield recipes for common items. But it is easier to get a clan hall: there recipes cost from 2k (potions) to 150k (accessories). Enterprising scammers are already selling such recipes for 1.5kk - be careful and don't fall for it.
- Your catch can be exchanged at the Fishermen Guild Member for angler's badges (Proof of Catching a Fish). With them the same NPC teaches skills that let you store more items in your warehouse and inventory, buy and sell more items at once, and keep more recipes in your recipe book.
Rods and Fishing Soulshots
Like weapons and armor, rods come in grades (No Grade, D, C, B, A, S). The better the grade, the stronger the fish you can catch. If your character uses a rod above their grade, a penalty applies to the catch chance, and monsters turn up much more often.
Since rods have grades, there are also Fishing Soulshots. They can be obtained only through a quest from the Fishermen Guild Member: kill monsters, collect Sweet Fluid from them, bring it back and exchange it for Fishing Soulshots of the grade you need. Fishing Soulshots double the damage to the fish; they are used just like regular Soulshots. Any rod uses 1 Fishing Soulshot.
Note for crafters: rods cannot be crystallized, so don't expect free B, A or S-grade crystals.
Fish types and bait
| Fish type | Favorite lure | Most often gives |
|---|---|---|
| Nimble | green (Green Lure) | materials |
| Fat | purple (Purple Lure) | parts |
| Ugly | yellow (Yellow Lure) | monsters |
Fish come in several colors: green, jade, blue, yellow, orange, purple, red, white and black. Green fish are the weakest, with little HP and a matching reward. Black fish are the toughest and require at least an A-grade rod.
The color of the fish you catch depends on your Fishing Mastery level: the higher it is, the better the fish. A higher-grade rod deals more damage to the fish, which improves your chances of bringing its HP to zero in time.
Tip from experienced anglers: potion ingredients come mostly from yellow fish, and Fishing Mastery should be around level 10-15 for this. Keep it in mind if you plan to seriously produce and sell potions - a very profitable business.
The Special Bait quest
The Fishermen Guild Member in every town offers a one-time Special Bait quest with 2 stages:
- Kill monsters, collect the required number of items and bring them back.
- You receive 4 special lures with which you must catch a Big Treasure Chest. You don't have to catch it yourself - you can buy one from a luckier angler.
The reward is an item; each town has its own reward and its own difficulty:
| Town | Reward |
|---|---|
| Dion Town | Black Pearl Ring (D) |
| Giran Town | Elven Ring (D) |
| Heine | Plated Leather Gloves (C) |
Secret Book of Giants
At high levels fishing can yield a special skill book, the Secret Book of Giants, needed to enchant skills. It is very hard to get and sells for a high price on the market. That is where the true riches lie.
Happy fishing!
Additional notes
From the "Fishing basics" article on l2db.ru (translated by NEFRIT):
- In this version the skills are called Fishing, Fishing Expertise, Pumping and Reeling. Fishing has 1 level; the other three have 26 levels each. Fishing Expertise determines how strong and valuable a fish you can catch; if you "over-learn" it, you get a fishing penalty, so raise it gradually, finding the optimal level. Pumping and Reeling determine the damage to the fish; their level should not differ from Fishing Expertise by more than 2.
- The fisherman NPC usually stands in the magic shop (where SoE is sold) or at the port.
- Put not only the skills but also your weapon, rod and Fishing Shots on the shortcut bar: once in a while you pull out a monster of about your level instead of a fish.
- You can fish anywhere the breath bar appears in the water; stand right at the water's edge without stepping in. When the fish's HP bar appears in the window, the fish is almost hooked: use Reeling when the fish's HP is rising and Pumping when it stands still.
- Do not rely on the labels above the bar (they appear at low levels or with For Beginners lures) - learn to fish by the bar.
Skill costs
Fishing Expertise, Pumping and Reeling are learned for adena; the cost is the same for each of the three skills. Learning all fishing skills to the maximum costs 3,785,200 adena in total.
| Level | Cost | Total from level 0 |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 10 | 10 |
| 2 | 50 | 60 |
| 3 | 200 | 260 |
| 4 | 300 | 560 |
| 5 | 500 | 1,060 |
| 6 | 800 | 1,860 |
| 7 | 1,600 | 3,460 |
| 8 | 2,600 | 6,060 |
| 9 | 4,000 | 10,060 |
| 10 | 6,700 | 16,760 |
| 11 | 8,000 | 24,760 |
| 12 | 10,000 | 34,760 |
| 13 | 16,000 | 50,760 |
| 14 | 23,000 | 73,760 |
| 15 | 30,000 | 103,760 |
| 16 | 40,000 | 143,760 |
| 17 | 53,000 | 196,760 |
| 18 | 66,000 | 262,760 |
| 19 | 80,000 | 345,760 |
| 20 | 93,000 | 438,760 |
| 21 | 100,000 | 538,760 |
| 22 | 120,000 | 658,760 |
| 23 | 130,000 | 788,760 |
| 24 | 140,000 | 928,760 |
| 25 | 160,000 | 1,088,760 |
| 26 | 173,000 | 1,261,760 |
Rods
You can use a rod of your grade or lower; a rod below your grade gives a fishing penalty. Damage to the fish depends on both the rod and the skill levels.
| Grade | Rod | Price (adena) |
|---|---|---|
| No Grade | Baby Duck Rod | 36,000 |
| D | Albatross Rod | 120,000 |
| C | Pelican Rod | 480,000 |
| B | Kingfisher Rod | 1,440,000 |
| A | Cygnus Pole | 4,800,000 |
| S | the source mistakenly repeats the name Pelican Rod | 12,000,000 |
Lures
Lures come in three colors and four qualities. High Grade is best: fish bite faster and are more valuable, and lures are cheap anyway. With a High Grade lure, the chance to catch a fish of your level is about 60%, one level lower 30% and one level higher 10%. According to the author's tests, purple is the best lure overall, but to look for a specific material or recipe you will have to switch colors.
| Lure | For Beginners | Low Grade | Medium Grade | High Grade | What bites |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Green Colored Lure | 60 | 120 | 144 | 180 | fast fish |
| Yellow Colored Lure | 72 | 144 | 180 | 216 | ugly fish |
| Purple Colored Lure | 84 | 180 | 216 | 240 | fat fish |
Fish and chests
- The higher your fishing level, the more valuable the fish and chests. If catching gets hard or the fish is too strong, change the lure color.
- A fish above your fishing level can be landed only with a Fishing Shot or a higher-grade rod. Rarely, with a C-grade rod and Fishing Shots, you hook a Black Fish.
- Every 3 levels of fish and chests come in 3 sizes: Small, Normal and Big. Keep at least 12 free inventory slots for the catch.
| Level | Color | Level | Color |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1-3 | Green | 16-18 | Purple |
| 4-6 | Jade | 19-21 | Red |
| 7-9 | Blue | 22-24 | White |
| 10-12 | Yellow | 25-27 | Black |
| 13-15 | Orange |
Gutting the catch
About 50% of fish turn out empty when opened; the rest give Common Craft materials and recipes or fish parts (bones, oil, roe) that can be used in crafting or exchanged for Proof of Catching a Fish.
| Fish part | Proof of Catching a Fish | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Fish Oil | 1 | 4 Fish Oil = 1 Greater Fish Oil (crafting) |
| Greater Fish Oil | 5 | 4 Greater Fish Oil = 1 Premium Fish Oil (crafting) |
| Premium Fish Oil | 25 | |
| Fish Scale | 4 | |
| Shiny Fish Scale | 6 | |
| Fish Gem | 10 | |
| Shiny Fish Gem | 20 | |
| Thin Fish Bone | 6 | |
| Thick Fish Bone | 9 |
Skills for Proof of Catching a Fish
The available skill level is usually 1 level per 10 character levels plus 1: for example, at level 20 you can learn Expand Inventory level 3. Expand Trade goes up to level 3 only, at character levels 40, 55 and 65. Expand Dwarven Craft (more recipes in the recipe book) is for dwarves only. Expand Warehouse, Expand Dwarven Craft and Expand Trade are the most useful for most players.
| Level | Expand Inventory (+6 slots) | Expand Warehouse (+6 slots) | Expand Common Craft (+6 slots) | Expand Dwarven Craft (+6 slots) | Expand Trade (+1 slot) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4,000 | 4,000 | 2,000 | 2,000 | 10,000 (lvl 40) |
| 2 | 8,000 | 8,000 | 4,000 | 4,000 | 20,000 (lvl 55) |
| 3 | 20,000 | 20,000 | 6,000 | 6,000 | 40,000 (lvl 65) |
| 4 | 20,000 | 20,000 | 10,000 | 10,000 | - |
| 5 | 60,000 | 60,000 | 10,000 | 10,000 | - |
| 6 | 60,000 | 60,000 | 10,000 | 10,000 | - |
| 7 | 100,000 | 100,000 | 20,000 | 20,000 | - |
| 8 | - | - | 20,000 | 20,000 | - |