FFXIV Fishing Guide - Get Hooked On This Relaxing Class

FFXIV Fishing Guide

Fishing differs a little bit from the two other FFXIV gathering classes. It’s much more of a minigame than mining and botany. It’s also much more reliant on patience and sheer luck than the remaining two. Read the content of this FFXIV Fishing guide to learn more about this unique profession.

Fishing tools consist of rods and tackle. As with any other gathering class, you need to hit level 10 on a combat class first to pick them up. After that, you can visit Fisher’s Guild in Limsa Lominsa.

You have to correctly select the bait you’re using, to the fish that you want to catch. This is probably the biggest difference between fishing and other Disciples of Land, but it comes down to one extra thing to keep in mind. Regarding the crafting classes, culinarians are the Disciples of Hand that have the most synergy with fishing, as they can use fish to create meals. There are no clear choices in terms of jobs, but each one of them can use consumables. Miner provides more materials for item crafting and botanist is somewhere in the middle. 

The basic mechanics are really simple. The skills that you need in the early game are Bait, Cast and Hook. The names are pretty self-explanatory.

Bait – choose the bait or lure that you’re going to use for fishing

Cast – cast your line into the water (or another place where fish live in FFXIV, we’ll get to those later in this text)

Hook – catch the fish and pull it out, a clear animation will indicate when you should do that

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Fishing class quests

Like all the other classes, fishing also has its own questline. All the objectives are fish that you can catch if you go to the right location and use the correct bait. You can also buy the quest objectives from other players. We believe that in most cases it’s unnecessary because you’re probably going to grind for the experience anyway. Some of them are really obnoxious to catch though and in those situations, we recommend at least considering the market. This is  the list of quests, fish to catch and optimal baits:

*Requires the skill Mooch, that uses a small HQ fish as a bait for a bigger fish

**Requires Spearfishing that doesn’t use bait

Fisher leveling guide

Early levels are the worst part of fishing since you’re not really getting anything valuable, but you still need to somehow get the experience. You can buy the necessary items for early class quests and leves, but this way you won’t get much exp. Even if you have a bunch of stockpiled leve allowances, you don’t want to waste them on those quests. Probably the best way of getting through those levels is just doing the class quests by yourself and grinding a bit (or a lot). Fishing in Final Fantasy XIV is really calm and relaxing.

Most of the time, you will be able to preemptively catch the fishes required for the next class quest, before you even hit the level high enough to accept the quest. It's recommended to do that when possible. Remember to upgrade your set of gathering gear along with the levels!

Level 1-5

As usual, in the beginning, you should focus on finishing the level 1 and level 5 class quests. To do that you’re going to have to catch five Lominsan Anchovies and three Harbor Herrings. The bait you’re going to need is respectively Lugworms and Pillbugs. You don’t have to go far, they can be caught in the waters next to Fisher’s Guild. If you want to get out of Limsa, you can try and catch White Coral in Summerford.

The best thing to do at this point is just sitting there and catching all the fish that bite. When you get to level 5 you will probably have the ones necessary for the quest. At the same time, you will start getting used to fishing in FFXIV, it’s especially worthwhile if it’s your contact with this gathering class. The quickest way to get through these levels is buying items necessary to complete leves and turning them in, but it’s seriously not worth, even if you have a lot of Gil, it’s a waste of allowances. You can take a look at the Grand Company turn-ins instead.

Level 5-10

The level 10 class quest requires you to catch a high-quality Princess Trout. The HQ fish are quite rare, so we recommend looking for it since level 5. The bait you should use is Crayfish Ball. If you get lucky and manage to catch it early, grinding is probably the best option for you.

That’s another unique aspect of fishing. Usually, the gathering and crafting classes rely very heavily on Levequests. In the case of fisher, grinding is actually decently efficient, especially in lower levels. We recommend fishing in Murmur Rills in the North Shroud, using Crayfish Balls as bait. If you're leveling a culinarian at the same time, you can focus on catching the fish that you'll use for crafting meals.

Level 10-15

For the next class quests, you will need 5 Navigator’s Daggers. The tackle you need is Rat Tails and the location is Brewer’s Beacon in Western La Noscea. The additional source of experience at that point is actually really efficient. You can go to Swiftperch and use Goby Ball as bait. It’s a great fishing spot by itself and as a bonus, you might happen to complete a Levequest or two. If you get any Pebble Crabs, Harbor Herrings, Tiger Cods or Moraby Flounders, remember that you can turn them in for some leve rewards.

Level 15-20

For catching the Warmwater Trout you’re going to have to travel to Oakwood in Upper La Noscea and use Crow Fly as bait, unfortunately, it requires level 20. Until then you can either grind or complete Levequests. Leves are rather difficult to do in this tier and the rewards for them aren’t that great, so we recommend grinding. Using Midge Basket as bait in Fallgourd Float gives really good effects. Around these levels you could also start fishing in Costa del Sol.

Level 20-25

In this tier, you learn two important skills. First of them is Release at level 22, it makes you not store a particular kind of fish during a single fishing session. Use it only when you have serious problems with inventory space. Even if you sell some fish cheap, it’s still some Gil that you would lose otherwise.

The second and by far more significant skill is Mooch at level 25. It allows you to use HQ fish as bait for bigger fish. Some of the class quests can’t be completed without using this skill.

The level 25 quest is one of them, so you won’t be able to do it beforehand. We recommend ignoring Levequests in this tier and just getting to level 25 by fishing in Yugram River in Eastern Thanalan, using Butterworms. You can also consider the Bronze Lake as a decent spot for this level. 

After unlocking Mooch at 25, you should go to Fallgourd Float and use Moth Pupa or Crayfish Ball. Then you have to fish until you get a high-quality Striped Goby that will serve as the proper bait. Then you use Mooch to catch the Shadow Catfish.

Level 25-30

The next class quest introduces another fishing mechanic. Some fish can only be caught during certain hours of Eorzean time. In the case of Fullmoon Sardines, it’s the nighttime (6PM – 6AM). Then you have to visit South Bloodshore in Eastern La Noscea and use Spoon Worm as bait.

You can get to level 27 by fishing in some of the older spots. After that arm yourself with Chocobo Flies and head to The Burning Wall in Eastern Thanalan.

Level 30-35

Another class quest that can’t be done beforehand. At level 35 you will unlock a trait called Dunefishing that allows you to catch fish in the sand. The Desert Catfish can be caught in dunes next to Sagolii Desert in Southern Thanalan, Sand Leeches are the best bait for it.

To get to level 35 we recommend you keep fishing at The Burning Wall with the Chocobo Flies. After getting 32 you can switch to Ceruleum Field in Nothern Thanalan and use Syrphid Basket as bait. Daniffen Pass and North Bloodshore are other good locations in these levels.

Level 35-40

The next class quest introduces another, slightly less predictable mechanic. The objective of this quest is five Raincallers which can only be caught while it’s raining. These fish can be caught in Gridania with Stem Borers used as a tackle. If you’re unluckily waiting for the right weather might turn out really annoying, so you might consider trying to find these fish in the Market Board, especially if you’re getting a lot of experience on your fisher.

Ceruleum Field with Syrphid Baskets remains a really efficient fishing spot in this tier. Again, fishing Levequests are rarely worthwhile. At this point you unlock Double Mooching trait which is exactly what the name suggests. You can use a fish as a bait for a bigger fish, that will then become bait for even bigger fish.

Level 40-45

Level 45 class quest can’t be done beforehand, because it requires a level 45 trait called Cloudfishing. When you have that available, equip yourself with Hoverworms and go to Sea of Clouds in Coerthas Central Highlands, where you’re going to catch five Cloud Cutters.

As for the extra sources of experience, the Burning Wall is still a good fishing spot, just make sure you use Stem Borers as a tackle. When you hit 44 you can go to Exploratory Ice Hole in Coerthas Central Highlands and use Topwater Frog as bait. The experience gains are worthwhile by themselves, but at the same time, you will catch some Northern Pikes which are an objective of a level.

Level 45-50

This is where the Double Mooch comes to play. To catch the Mazlaya Marlin you’re going to need to visit North Bloodshore in Eastern La Noscea. The first fish you’re going to need is an HQ Harbor Herring, there are many baits you can use to catch them, one of the best ones is Floating Minnow. When you have the high-quality Harbor Herring, you have to use it to catch HQ Ogre Barracuda and then the Mazlaya Marlin.

Remember, you can only Mooch with high-quality fish. This class quest requires a lot of patience. If you’re able to buy the objective at the Marketplace, you should seriously consider doing that. North Bloodshore is a low-level fishing spot, so the experience gains you’ll get for the time spent will be really small.

The best way of getting experience in this tier is fishing in Ceruleum Field using Stem Borers as a tackle. You should have some leftover leve allowances from the lower levels, now it’s time to make use of them. You should be able to catch a lot of Ignus Snails and Sludgeskippers, they both are objectives of this tier’s Levequests.

Level 50-60

Similarly to other gathering classes, fishing also makes use of the scrip system. It allows you to turn in collectible fish for great rewards. To do that you’re going to have to complete the Inscrutable Tastes quest in Ishgard and unlock the skill called Collect that gives you the ability to make all your fish collectibles. In the old days of Final Fantasy XIV, you would hit the level cap at 50. Now the expansion has raised it a bit higher. 

At level 51 you get access to Patience and Powerful Hookset. Patience increases the chance of getting a high-quality fish but reduces hook efficiency. Powerful Hooking removes the debuff. You should always use Patience in combination with either Powerful Hookset or Precision Hookset that you unlock at level 56. They’re going to be useful since most of the class quests now will require HQ fish

.

For the level 53 class quest, you will have to catch HQ Icepicks in Coerthas Western Highlands (there are two spots: Unfrozen Pond and South Banepool), using Stonefly Nymphs as bait. Luckily, those locations are also great for farming collectibles and levels in this tier. You should gather Glacier Cores and Lake Urchins for leves and Icepicks as collectibles (after you get enough for a class quest of course).

Level 55 class quest is another one that requires mooching. Get Stonefly Nymphs and head to The Hundred Throes in The Dravanian Forelands. Then you’re going to have to catch HQ Blueclaw Shrimp and use them as bait for the HQ Shadowhiskers. In this location, you will also be able to catch Whilom Catfish that, as well as the aforementioned Blueclaw Shrimp are Levequests objectives. After you hit level 54, you can switch to Cloudtop in The Sea of Clouds, using Red Balloon as a tackle. That way you will be able to catch three level objectives at the same time: Buoyant Oviform, Blue Cloud Coral and Mahu Wai.

For the next class quest you’re going to have to catch a Letter Puffer, to do it you have to The Churning Mists, use Red Balloon or Giant Crane Fly as bait, catch HQ Sky Faerie and use Mooch to get the HQ Letter Puffer. For the extra experience and income, you should focus on the collectibles.

The level 60 class quest requires you to catch a high-quality Catkiller in Abalthia’s Spine in The Sea of Clouds. There are two ways of doing it. The classic one would be catching an HQ Hedgemole Cricket, then using Mooch to catch HQ Bullfrog that can later be used as bait for the Catkiller. Luckily, at level 60 you will be able to use Brute Leeches, they are a special bait that you can buy for red scrips. They allow you to skip mooching and directly catch even the biggest fish.

Level 60-70

For the level 63 class quest, you will have to catch Deep Velodyna Carp in the Velodyna River. The bait for it is Salmon Roe. At 61 you will be able to unlock Spearfishing. To do it you have to complete a quest called A New Fishing Ex-spear-ience. The skills used for it are Fathom and Shark Eye. To spearfish, you have to be underwater and find the teeming waters (they work like nodes for other gathering classes). Then you have to wait for bubbles to appear and strike the approaching fish. There are three sizes of gig heads that allow for catching different fish. Even if you’re not interested In that, you should unlock it, since it will be necessary for a class quest.

A good source of extra experience is making use of your new ability and going to Yanxia. Spearfishing there will provide you with Common Whelk which is a Levequest objective. Meanwhile, you should keep turning in collectibles.

Level 65 class quest requires you to catch high-quality Harutsage Sprags in the Shoal Rock, using Live Shrimp as bait. Remember about Patience and the hooksets. For the extra experience, you should go spearfishing and then get your Levequests rewards. One option is The Sunken Junk in Yanxia and getting Doman Bubble Eyes. The other one is catching Sea Lamps in The Kobayashi Maru in The Ruby Sea.

At level 68 you’ll get the only class quest that requires spearfishing. The quest is quite complicated. First of all, you’re going to need the level 66 skill Truth of Oceans. While you have it active, go to The Sunken Junk and start spearfishing using the Large Gig Head. When you get a Yanxian Tiger Prawn, use Veteran Trade to avoid getting them later. The fish that you’re interested in is called Ichthyosaurus. After you catch 10 of them, Swimming Shadows will pop on your map. Remember to switch to Small Gig Head at this point. Using it you should be able to catch the required Dafangshi.

To get some extra experience just equip yourself with Bream Lure and go to the Isle of Zekki in The Ruby Sea. With that combination, you’ll be able to catch Koromo Octopus for a Levequest and Daio Squid for scrips. Make sure to use Rhalgr's Reach Custom Deliveries.

At level 70 you have to catch 5x HQ Giant Plesiosaur. Luckily, they don’t require anything special, just a good fishing gear and some patience. Go to Onokoro in The Ruby Sea, equipped with some Live Shrimp or Bream Lures and fish away!

Fishing in FF14

That would be it for the role and ways of leveling a fisher. As you can see, this class differs a lot from other FFXIV Disciples of Land. While economic-wise it might not be the best choice for a gathering or crafting class, especially at the beginning, fishing is very relaxing. It's a great thing to do during a break from a day of some more action-packed content to do on your combat jobs, like dungeons and trials, that FFXIV and the realm of Eorzea are filled with. It's good when you need your in-game life to be calm and relaxing.

Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn is a Square Enix game that already had two major expansions: Heavensward and Stromblood, with the third one - Shadowbringers coming really close. Many people are playing FFXIV and they create a friendly community of players. As we already mentioned, Fishing can provide you with materials to craft consumables and every job can use them, so you can't go wrong with this class! Of course, we recommend going through the fascinating story first.