How to Fish in New World

Fishing. The task that I hate the most in the majority of video games, but I seem to always get myself trapped in the never-ending cycle of fishing nonetheless.

At this point, I’ve fished in a good chunk of video games, especially being that the majority of MMOs have fishing involved and unfortunately it doesn’t seem to matter what the mechanics for fishing are… I just don’t seem to like it.

My husband has even questioned my decisions to fish whenever I come to him saying I’ve gotten achievements such as catching 10,000 fish given the fact that I state my displeasure in fishing so frequently and still end up doing it; but what is a boy supposed to do when his completionist heart takes over?

Admittedly I do like the way that New World has set up fishing as the mini-game isn’t boring and you have a good amount of options when it comes to baits, but I can’t say that I absolutely love standing around and actually doing it.

You see, for me, I don’t mind very simple Fishing mechanics where all I have to do is listen for a sound prompt and reel in my fish, such as in FFXIV or in Trove. Although many players find these mechanics boring because they are, they at least give me the chance to do something else at the same time. I can be working on an article while passively fishing, but this isn’t the case while fishing in New World. 

*cough* Even, while writing this post I’m attempting to complete my main fishing quest and have gotten myself up by at least 50 levels. Blame my ADHD? 

Though New World’s fishing doesn’t take a genius to solve how to ensure you catch fish, it does require you to pay more attention than one would in FFXIV, Trove or Terraria. That being said, it is more enjoyable than in Stardew Valley or other similar mini-game-oriented fishing games.  

The following guide will take you through everything you need to know about Fishing in New World, including how to unlock various Fishing spots, how to catch fish and what the nuances of having different depths of fishing or utilizing different baits are.

Let’s get cracking!

HOW DO YOU START FISHING IN NEW WORLD?

In order to begin Fishing players will need to either get a Fishing Rod by crafting it, getting it from a quest or purchasing it from the Trade Post. 

Depending on when you start your fishing adventures you’re going to want to get a fishing rod in different ways.

Essentially, there is no use in using a lesser fishing rod if your player level is high enough. Much like Weapons and Armour, there are different tiers of fishing rods and although their perks might sound confusing, a lot of them are actually really good. 

In my opinion, if you are new to the game, don’t buy yourself a fishing rod and instead either craft yourself one or begin the fishing quest line with Michael Shields called Fishing With Shields in Windsward.

If you’re already level 60, I strongly recommend purchasing a Fishing Rod on the Trading Post that is the highest Gear Score as this will ensure that you have the smoothest time while fishing. I personally spent about 500 Gold on an Epic fishing rod with 4 tier 3 stats, which is really cheap all things considered.

Admittedly, this may just be because of the server I am on, but I’m sure it’s not going to be that expensive for you to get something for a similar price. 

Now players should note, if they complete the aforementioned fishing quest line to completion (it’s a bit long), they will get a Legendary Fishing Rod. The only unfortunate thing, this Legendary Fishing Rod will come with random perks so it might actually be crap in comparison to something that’s a lower tier. This is why I would recommend not holding out for the Legendary Fishing Rod, especially because you’re going to do a lot of Fishing before you complete the quest. 

Now, unless you’re going to be strictly focusing on fishing, I would not say that it’s going to be important to frequently upgrade your fishing rod as you would with another Tool, but again this is going to depend on how much you’re going to focus on fishing throughout your levelling process.

INSTRUCTIONS ON HOW TO FISH 

When players have a fishing rod equipped they will need to locate any water on the map. When I say any water, I actually mean any water. 

I actually found this shocking as some of the water sources I have located and successfully fished in feel like puddles and while more difficult to successfully fish in, it’s good to know. 

Now, once players have successfully located a source of water they will want to hit F3 in order to enter the fishing mode. 

Fishing mode has three options inside of it: Cast, Equip Bait and Exit Fishing. These options have the default keybind:

Hold Left Mouse button to enter the first portion of the fishing minigame. Letting go will immediately cast the line, so just be aware of this if you want a specific length. I will cover more on this shortly to explain what this does for you. 

Upon releasing your line players will have to wait a short amount of time before a fish nibbles. It should be noted that no matter any of the inputs you will always get a fish to snag, it’s just a matter of time. 

Right before a fish snags players will be notified with a “Get Ready” right next to the fishing orb. Get your finger on the mouse because you’re going to have to complete the second portion of this mini-game which goes by very quickly. 

When players successfully snag a fish in this portion they will enter the third part of the mini-game where they actually catch the fish. This mechanic is quite simple, though I will also cover how the full thing works and how to optimize it shortly.

First, let’s break down everything you need to know about each section in depth.

WHAT DOES DISTANCE DO WHEN FISHING IN NEW WORLD?

Get ready, because I’m about to out myself as a person who struggles with basic science, but I’m not going to pretend I was a straight A student today or ever. 

Due to the actual laws of science, New World implemented the same rules into the game. Essentially, the further a player casts their line, the easier the fishing game becomes as there is less tension on the wire. 

Now, if you’re like me, which I hope you’re not, you didn’t know this and had to ask your husband why… Though if you’re also like me, having this knowledge will make it so I always ensure that I try to reach the longest distance possible. That being said, this is why it’s important to have a fishing rod that has a very long reach. 

Although I can’t say that the minigame is the most difficult even if you don’t optimize, it’s always better to attempt to make your life easier. 

There are three different prompts a player can receive during the distance mini-game with the two best options being Medium and Max. 

Now, while reaching the Maximum reach will make the fishing mini-game easier, there are going to be moments when a player will want to completely ignore distance such as when trying to successfully fish in a Hotspot. While I’ll cover the ins and outs of hot spots shortly, I’m just going to say that you can always move your character so you’re the perfect distance to cast a Medium of Max range.

I’m not going to lie, when it comes to fishing Hotspots, I refuse to care about what distance I am casting at as long as I am actually hitting the Hotspot. Though I feel this way, I can say that the minigame tends to be significantly harder in these instances,, especially when I’m reeling in a heavy fish. I’ve sadly almost lost a few fish 

If players want to successfully always land a Maximum they will simply need to wait around 2 seconds to perfectly hit it. 

HOW DOES DEPTH AFFECT FISHING IN NEW WORLD?

Depth, in my opinion, is the most important element of fishing in my opinion. While it does not affect what kinds of fish you catch, it does affect the speed that a fish will nibble on your line. 

Although for me, I don’t tend to care how long it takes for a fish to snag, since I passively fish while writing articles, if you’re someone who wants to fish quickly you’re going to want to make sure you’re consistently landing in Deep Water.

The following are the metrics when it comes to fishing in each depth of water, though it’s important to note that any bait is going to cut this time in half. More on all the other perks of bait soon! 

VERY SHALLOW WATER

In Freshwater, players will feel a snag within 20 to 30 seconds.

In Saltwater, players will feel a snag within 15 to 25 seconds. 

SHALLOW WATER

In Freshwater, players will feel a snag within 10 to 15 seconds.

In Saltwater, players will feel a snag within 10 to 20 seconds. 

DEEP WATER

In Freshwater, players will feel a snag within 5 to 15 seconds.

In Saltwater, players will feel a snag within 5 to 15 seconds. 

HOW DO YOU SUCCESSFULLY CATCH A FISH IN NEW WORLD?

When players reach the bite portion of the minigame they will be met with a circle that displays the tension of their line. Here there are three different colours that will appear depending on the tension of the fishing rod. 

The colours that are depicted are green, orange and then orange/red with a circle around it that pulsates. Players will want to fish between the green and orange, but anytime they see the pulsating circle they will want to release their mouse so the tension releases. 

Although players can still successfully reel in a fish while dabbling in the pulsating portion of the catch minigame, it is definitely playing with fire. This is especially true if players are fishing in Hotspots as fish tend to be bigger, essentially raising the chance that the tension is going to be too much as the fish gets closer. 

This is why distance tends to matter, especially in these situations.

Now, a couple of things to note while reeling in the fish. You’re going to want to hold your mouse down for as long as you can before getting into the danger territory. The longer you hold your mouse down, the faster the fish will be reeled in, meaning that even though it is safer to click and stop repeatedly, you’re not really going to get anywhere with it. 

With that being said, when you release your line and the tension loosens the fish will slowly retreat, however, it’s not enough for a player to worry as it’s a very small amount especially if you don’t wait too long. 

WHAT DOES FISHING LEVEL DO IN NEW WORLD?

While all other skills will provide players with an increase the speed that you complete the task, fishing levels don’t do that. Instead, players will begin unlocking Hotspots that are labelled in their Trade Skill menu. 

Unlocking a Hotspot due to your level will not reveal the location of the Hotspot on your map, however, they are relatively easy to find given the information given on the menu or players can look up all of their locations on the following website.

Even if players know the location of a Hotspot, they will not be able to use it until they reach the required level. 

Players can also locate hotspots directly on the map by searching for small hexagons in the area mentioned in your skill tab. They’re not the most prominent, but it’s a good thing to keep in mind if you’re not able to have access to the online map. 

When players have a Hotspot unlocked and are close enough to it a prompt will appear on your screen stating what Hotspot you discovered.

WHAT IS A FISHING HOTSPOT IN NEW WORLD?

Hotspots are essentially 2.5 meters of water that bubble in a location. Not every source of water has a Hotspot, but every area in the world does. 

Although every Hotspot that has been unlocked will appear in the water, they will not always be active. Essentially each Hotspot has a limited amount of fish in it, but there are no common fish in some of them, meaning that players will want to focus on farming them if they want the best resources.

When players locate a Hotspot they will need to ensure that their line lands directly inside for it to count, though players will be alerted whether or not they were successful each time. This all being said, players will want to ensure that a Hotspot is active by checking if there are fish jumping out of it. If there are no fish jumping out, move on to the next Hotspot. 

There are three tiers of Hotposts, each depicted with a star. These are called Broad Hotspots (1-Star), Rare Hotspots (2-Stars) and Secret Hotspots (3-Stars).

Although all of the Hotspots are going to be beneficial to a player, each come with different perks. So, let’s cover the benefits of each:

BROAD HOTSPOTS

Broad Hotspots have a maximum of 30 fish in them before they despawn. Once they despawn it will take between 20-30 minutes for them to replenish. 

Players will get the following ratios of fish from the Hotspot:

45% chance for Common Fish 

40% chance of Uncommon Fish

10% Chance of Rare Fish

5% chance of Legendary Fish

RARE HOT SPOTS

Rare Hotspots have a maximum of 20 fish in them before they despawn. Once they despawn it will take between 20-30 minutes for them to replenish. 

Players will get the following ratios of fish from the Hotspot:

45% chance for Common Fish 

40% chance of Uncommon Fish

10% Chance of Rare Fish

5% chance of Legendary Fish

SECRET HOTSPOTS 

Broad Hotspots have a maximum of 30 fish in them before they despawn. Once they despawn it will take between 30-45 minutes for them to replenish. 

Players will get the following ratios of fish from the Hotspot:

0% chance for Common Fish 

20% chance of Uncommon Fish

70% Chance of Rare Fish

10% chance of Legendary Fish

The above stats are before a player’s modifiers from Gear kick in, so in some cases if players have good enough perks they will only obtain rare fish or higher from Hotspots so make sure you have yourself some good Gear.

It should also be noted that Hotspots do not affect the size of the fish. With that being said, you will get more experience fishing at Hotspots simply due to the fact that you’ll be catching more rare fish and faster, though specifically fishing in a hotspot does not boost your experience. 

WHAT DO BAITS DO IN NEW WORLD?

Although players can fish successfully without any bait, I would strongly recommend against it. 

Baits are extremely easy to come by and I’m going to be honest… I have way too many from simply doing my other chores to the point where I just sell my extras on the Trading Post for very cheap.

As mentioned earlier, one of the best perks to using bait is the fact that it will cut fishing catch times in half and although this isn’t as big of a necessity if you are fishing at a Hotspot. Still, it’s a good idea especially since many of the baits will provide you with much better fish.

The following is everything you need to know about the various types of Bait in New World:

FRESHWATER BAITS

Typically Freshwater areas are rivers or internal water sources, though this isn’t always the case. Unfortunately, there is no prompt that lets you know that a source is Fresh Water other than standing in it and hoping that you get the prompt that allows you to collect water, however, this isn’t always possible as it depends on the depth of the water. 

MEAT BAIT

Meat Bait requires players to craft them by cooking. They will provide players with a small boost to catching bigger fish in Freshwater.

I would absolutely avoid using these for fishing, however, they are fairly common in town rewards, so I would utilize them for these.

CLAM BAIT

Clam Bait is gained by breaking down Clams found in Saltwater. It will provide players with a Medium boost to catching bigger fish in Freshwater.

I honestly wouldn’t use these unless you have a quest pertaining to big fish as rarity tends to be more important in the long run. 

OYSTER BAIT

Oyster Bait is gained by breaking down Oysters found in Saltwater. It will provide players with a Large boost to catching bigger fish in Freshwater.

I honestly wouldn’t really use these unless you have a quest pertaining to big fish as rarity tends to be more important in the long run. 

BREAD BAIT

Bread Bait requires players to either craft them in Cooking or to find them in Provisions Chests. I seriously beg you never to craft these unless you are trying to complete a quest for your Town, otherwise, they’re super useless and expensive. 

Players will only gain a small boost to the rarity of fish in Freshwater.

WOODLOUSE BAIT

In my opinion, Woodlouse Bait is the second best type of bait when it comes to Freshwater fishing and truthfully it’s going to be extremely easy to get them as you will simply need to harvest Bushes. 

Admittedly, I don’t harvest many bushes, but if you’re ever in a pinch, get to it!

FIREFLY BAIT

It’s so weird to take in that Firefly Bait is debatably the best bait to ever have on hand as it will provide you with a large boost in your chance to catch rare fish in Freshwater. 

Players will simply need to collect Bulrush in order to get Firefly Bait and I’m not going to lie… I have hundreds of these. 

I will say, the nicest thing about Firefly Bait is there should always be Bullrush near the water source you are fishing at and if not, it won’t be hard to find more for future yields.

SALTWATER BAITS 

Saltwater tends to be any open source of water or anything that is tainted, such as Reekwater. Saltwater tends to be more difficult to spot in comparison to Freshwater.

FISH BAIT 

Fish Bait is crafted while cooking and is one of the more useless baits.

It will provide players with a small boost to catching big fish. I would strongly recommend avoiding it. 

SNAIL BAIT 

Snail Bait is obtained by salvaging aquatic snails, which are caught by fishing in Freshwater. 

It will provide players with a medium boost to catching fish that are heavier. Quite useless if you ask me. 

ELECTRIC EEL BAIT

Electric Eel Bait is obtained by salvaging Electric Eels which are obtained by fishing in Saltwater. 

Electric Eel Bait isn’t the most useful bait to have as it will simply make it so a player has a higher chance at catching bigger fish. Again, this is mostly useful for quests and nothing else. 

CHEESE BAIT

Cheese Bait is quite costly and will require players to either cook it or find it in provisions chests.

Admittedly, I would just hold onto these for those times where you get asked for them in Town Projects, because all they do is give you a small boost to catching rarer fish. 

NIGHTCRAWLER BAIT

Nightcrawler Bait is quite useful and will allow players to catch rare fish by a medium amount. 

While harder to get than their Freshwater counterparts, they are still relatively easy to farm only requiring players to pick up Flint at day. 

Though in the early game players will be picking up a lot of Flint, this tends to fall off in the mid-game, though it really shouldn’t. Flint is useful for a few mid-game recipes that will help carry players into the end-game… so get to picking it up! Especially during the day. 

GLOWWORM BAIT

Glowworms are the counterpart to Nightcrawlers and are found during the daytime under Flint. Admittedly, they are the stronger counterpart as they provide you with a large boost on catching rare fish in Saltwater. 

Due to this, I might just have to take back my comment… grab Flint at night baaaaabbby! It’s going to be better in the long run. 

HOW TO GET FISHING GEAR

There are a few different ways to get Fishing Gear in New World with the first obviously being to craft Fishing Gear.

Crafting can get pretty pricy and will take a long time before players will be able to craft the Gear that they want, so I recommend that you actually buy your Fishing Gear on the Trading post.

I’m also not going to lie, it seems like crafting isn’t actually the most profitable job to do and even our server crafters have recommended that you always purchase for yourself and craft for other due to the RNG that takes place when trying to get the best perks or the Gear Score you would like. 

While this can seem like someone simply trying to protect their market, I’m not going to lie… it makes sense. 

Now, this isn’t to discourage you from becoming a crafter, because I strongly recommend doing it if you have the capabilities and interests, but I would still recommend buying all the Gear you want instead of crafting it and then ending up with perks you don’t even want. 

Even in what little Gear crafting I’ve completed, as I’m primarily a gatherer who crafts the high tier resources for crafters, I’ve noticed how frustrating Weapon, Tool  and Armour crafting is comparatively. 

You see, there’s absolutely no way to guarantee that you’re going to get a tier 5 Weapon or get all the perks that you want. 

Now, if players are not interested in Crafting or in purchasing Fishing Gear they can simply grind itby going through Elite Ancient Chests.

This is actually how I tend to grind for my Gear as it can be useful to gaining Weapon and Gear Expertise, which is going to be a long grind to ensure that you deal the most damage in end-game. 

Although grinding Elite Chests is still going to have a good amount of RNG, they do have the best chance of dropping the best Gear in the game and players can only loot each Elite Chest once per day. 

Even if players do not get the Fishing Gear they want this way, they should be able to get a good amount of Gear they can sell off on the Trading Board. 

Players should note that if they ever get a tier-5 set of Fishing Gear in this manner they will not be able to sell it as it is bound to the player upon pick up. Though this is true, you can still get a good amount of Gold from selling lower-tier Fishing Gear as players are always searching for decent alternatives. 

Players will also get Fishing Gear while finishing the main Fishing Quest Line.

WHAT ARE THE BEST PERKS FOR FISHING

When it comes to picking perks, it’s really going depend on the player, but there are a few I would strongly recommend you focus on. 

Each of the fishing perks has three tiers, so before we dive into each of them I would strongly suggest you ensure you’re getting tier 3 perks on everything especially if you are purchasing them from the Trading Post. 

FISHING COLOSSUS

Fishing Colossus will provide players with a Small, Medium or Large boost in catching Bigger Fish. This is the best perk to get if players are trying to catch bigger fish during any time of day.

While I don’t prioritize big fish because at most they will give you a few more resources, I wouldn’t be mad about getting this perk at Tier-3.

DAYTIME COLOSSUS

I’m not going to lie, I hate that they’ve made it so you can get perks that depend on the daytime schedule. Although not the actual worst, players will need to fish in the daytime in order to gain a chance for fish to be bigger when they fish.

Much like Fishing Colossus, players can get a Small, Medium or Large boost to catching these Fish. 

Admittedly, these stats do seem to stack so you can get Fishing Colossus and Daytime Colossus, but I don’t particularly care about bigger fish. 

NIGHTTIME COLOSSUS

Nighttime Colossus is the night version of Daytime Colossus, providing players with a Small, Medium or Large boost to catching bigger fish during the night and while I don’t care, you may. 

SALTWATER COLOSSUS

I feel like Saltwater Colossus is better than Daytime or Nighttime as it will simply require you to farm out certain areas of the map, versus time of day which you cannot control. 

Similar players have a Small, Medium or Large boost to catching bigger fish and I wouldn’t attempt to get this perk, but it’s your call. 

FRESHWATER COLOSSUS

Similar to Saltwater Colossus, this perk will allow you to catch bigger fish in Freshwater. I tend to prefer Freshwater, but this will come down to your preference on which types of Fish you want to catch.

At the end of the day, I’d still avoid Colossus upgrade because I don’t care for bigger fish, if it can give me a Small, Medium or Large Boost. 

LUCKY WATERS

Lucky Waters is by far the best upgrade to have when it comes to fishing. This will provide players with a Small, Medium or Large boost in catching rare fish. 

Lucky Waters is not bound to a specific time of day, which is why it’s so good for fishing.

I prefer not being limited to a certain time of day as you can easily waste time bouncing between Hotspots and the time changing by the time you find an active one. This is by far one of the most frustrating things to happen, especially during peak hours on a server.

Lucky Waters can single-handedly be the only perk you need to ensure you always get Rare Fish in any Hotspot.

LUCKY DAY

Lucky Day provides players a similar buff to Lucky Waters, giving you a Small, Medium or Large boost to finding Rare Fish, but only in daytime.

I would typically recommend this to help boost Lucky Waters, but having it on it’s own will somewhat force you to only fish during the daytime. It’s your call though, especially if it’s very cheap. 

LUCKY NIGHT

Lucky Night provides players a similar buff to Lucky Waters, giving you a Small, Medium or Large boost to finding Rare Fish, but only during the nighttime.

I would typically recommend this to help boost Lucky Waters, but having it on it’s own will somewhat force you to only fish during the nighttime. It’s your call though, especially if it’s very cheap. 

FISHING REACH

Although players may not understand the use of Fishing Reach at first, it’s actually a really good perk to have if you’re trying to ensure that your fishing minigame goes smoothy or if a Hotspot is too far from wherever you’re standing.

Honestly, this is my second-best choice when it comes to selecting perks for my fishing for and will increase your cast by either 1%, 2% or 3%.

Now, before anyone comes for me, it’s admittedly not the best but it reduces the amount of thinking you’ll have to do when it comes to fishing during specific times of day. 

SUN REACH

Sun Reach will increase the catching distance during the daytime by either 5%, 10% or 15%. This is much better than Fishing Reach, but it will require you to fish during the day which is not always a possibility. 

Still, this is a great perk to have and admittedly better than Fishing Reach. 

MOON’S REACH

Sun Reach will increase the catching distance during the nighttime by either 5%, 10% or 15%. This is much better than Fishing Reach, but it will require you to fish during the day which is not always a possibility. 

Still, this is a great perk to have and admittedly better than Fishing Reach. 

STURDY

I have to admit… I don’t care about this perk as all it will do is increase your fishing rod’s durability by 10%, 20% or 50%.

Now, I don’t have an issue with Gold or Repair Parts, so I don’t typically try to get this perk. I have to say, I’m surprised that Fishing Rods don’t have the perk where it doesn’t lose any durability, but what can you do? If you somehow get a perk like that, I would say it is worth it… otherwise, it’s a bit of a waste of a space.

SALTWATERS BRAWN

Saltwaters Brawn makes it easier to catch fish and will increase the line strength when fishing in Saltwater by either 10%, 15% or 20%. I have to say, I really like this perk because it can help ensure that you don’t need to take your finger off your mouse while reeling in a fish.

While I can’t say that this is the most important perk to have, it does significantly reduce the difficulty, so for those of you who are struggling or simply want to ease their stress… go for it! 

FRESHWATERS BRAWN

Freshwaters Brawn makes it easier to catch fish and will increase the line strength when fishing in Freshwater by either 10%, 15% or 20%. I have to say, I really like this perk because it can help ensure that you don’t need to take your finger off your mouse while reeling in a fish.

While I can’t say that this is the most important perk to have, it does significantly reduce the difficulty, so for those of you who are struggling or simply want to ease their stress… go for it!