Fishing is a "craft" which seeks to find and catch the fish in the oceans, seas, lakes, rivers, streams and ponds of Vana'diel. There is also a Fish Ranking contest that is held occasionally that some fishers enjoy. The Fishermans' Guild headquarters is located in the Federation of Windurst, though guild representatives can be found elsewhere. There you can obtain Synthesis Image Support to assist your crafting, as well as buy and sell guild related items. Guild members beyond the rank of Novice can earn Guild Points, used to purchase items exclusive to crafters.
First, equip a fishing rod and bait in your ranged and ammo slots. Then, find a body of water, place yourself at the edge, and type /fish, or choose Fish from the menu. It is also possible to set a macro by simply typing /fish into an empty macro slot.
Unlike other crafts, fishing requires a certain degree of interaction in order to achieve results. Wait a few seconds for a bite. When a bite comes, the fish's stamina bar will appear over your head. Arrows will appear at your left and right. Hit the directional keys or move the controller's toggle within the time limit of the arrow's appearance to lower the fish's stamina (its HP bar), and stop pressing anything when the fish's stamina hits zero (the fish will not thrash if you aren't pressing anything). Press enter (or confirm) to reel it in. If you continue to press a directional key after the fish's stamina hits zero (the stamina bar will go dark), there is a chance that it could regain a sliver of health and break your line upon attempting to reel it in
Catching things via fishing puts a strain on your character which is commonly known as "fishing fatigue". It does not affect any other aspect of your character other than your fishing performance. Fatigue resets itself back to normal when the day changes, at Japanese midnight (Earth time). Different catches carry different amounts of fatigue along with them (small fish usually carry minimal fatigue, whereas large fish or heavy items such as Coral Fragments can fatigue you much faster). As fatigue rises, bite rates may drop and it can become more difficult to catch certain fish (fish stamina bars will not decrease as quickly). When fatigue reaches its maximum (after successfully reeling in around 200 fish and/or items), you will no longer get any bites, effectively limiting the total amount of fishing you can do every day.
If the character being used has logged on-line for the first time less than 2 weeks ago, or/and the job level is lower than 20, the maximum number of fish and/or items that can be reeled in is lowered to 10 for the passing Earth day, resetting at Japanese midnight as usual.The level 20 limit is imposed regardless of the level of other jobs the character might have. Seems that having a job leveled to 20 is now sufficient, it does not have to be the current job. After 2 weeks have passed, the limit on new characters is lifted, while the limit from fishing below level 20 is lifted after 24 hours (provided a higher level job is used the next time).
Bait or lures can be used as fishing tackle. One piece of bait is expended each time you get a bite on the line, regardless of the results (with one exception; see below). Lures can be used indefinitely, but they will disappear from your inventory if you get a line snap or a rod break. The type of rod used also determines how well it can withstand potential lost catches, line snaps, or rod breaks; along with fishing skill. The type of bait used determines what kinds of things will bite on the line.
The behavior of the rod is a huge clue in determining what you have hooked on the line. If the rod is aggressively and swiftly shifting from left to right, it may be the sign of a big or high level fish. On the other hand, if the rod hangs in the middle for long periods of time before shifting left or right, it may be a sign you have hooked something like a Cobalt Jellyfish. Careful observation of the rod's behavior, combined with knowledge of the bait you're using and what it can attract in the area you are fishing in, can help you save time by identifying the fish on your line without even having to actually catch it.
Fishing skill ultimately determines the depletion and recovery rates of the stamina bar. A higher fishing skill also reduces the chances that the rod will break, a line will snap, or the catch is lost due to skill, after the stamina bar is diminished. If a fish's skill cap is significantly higher than the player's fishing skill level, it will slowly recover stamina while it's on the hook, without any player input. On the flip side, if the fish's skill cap is significantly lower than the player's fishing skill, it will take minimal effort to drain the stamina bar. Unlike other crafts, fishing skill level has far less impact on your actual ability to catch the fish. It is entirely possible to hook and catch fish 50 levels above you, or even more. It will just be increasingly difficult to obtain a fish, the more distant it is from a player's fishing skill level.
You only have a limited amount of time to attempt to land your catch. This time varies primarily on the type of rod being used, and in some rarer cases, the bait and potential catch on your line. When you receive the warning "You don't know how much longer you can keep this one on the line..." you have exactly 7 seconds remaining to attempt to land the catch, or it will be automatically lost.
Time is a serious factor when attempting to catch Gugrusaurus or Lik, the two primary fish needed for the quest Indomitable Spirit. These fish are very strong and are designed to not allow you enough time to weaken and catch them under normal circumstances. In order to catch them you must take other measures that normally aren't required for other fish, such as finding and using the special baits Drill Calamary and Dwarf Pugil along with purchasing the key item Mooching, or finding and using the special Penguin Ring and Albatross Ring.
When the target's stamina is reduced properly before attempting to catch, the catch rate is usually 100%. However, if the fish is too strong for the rod being used, there is a chance for lost catches, or even line/rod breaks, any of which will result in failure to catch the target. A rod break will cause you to lose your lure or bait and leaves your rod in a broken, unusable state until it is repaired, usually via Woodworking or Alchemy. A line break will only cause the loss of your lure or bait. A lost catch will only cause the loss of bait; lures are retained. It is also possible to get lost catches if you are trying to catch small fish using a rod specifically designed for big fish, such as a Composite Fishing Rod. Even if the catch is not successful, as long as you made an attempt for it and weakened the fish's stamina properly before reeling in, you will still be eligible for skillups (assuming the would-be catch was a high enough level to give you any skillups).
Most types of unstackable fish will have a tag in its item description, similar to signed items made by HQ crystals, indicating the fish's size in ilms (Im) and weight in ponzes (Pz). These statistics are utilized in Fish Ranking contests. They do not affect the item's performance during synthesis, when eaten as food, or used in any other such manner.
You may cancel your fishing attempt at any time. You will lose any bait you are using, but not lures, and you will not break your rod.
New fishing messages as of May 10,2011:
Messages displayed upon getting a bite will indicate the size and type of your potential catch as follows:
Small fish: "Something caught the hook!"
Large fish: "Something caught the hook!!!"
Non-fish targets: "You feel something pulling at your line."
Monsters: "Something clamps onto your line ferociously!"
Additionally, you get a second line with your "gut feeling" about the fish:
"You have a (good/bad/terrible) feeling about this one!" = The fish is 7 levels or less higher than your skill+gear or you're above its skill cap. The bad/terrible messages seem to only happen if you're below skill cap and indicate a higher chance of your line or rod breaking if you aren't both using a rod that doesn't break to the fish and depleting stamina to zero. You can ignore it if you do both of those, though the line may still snap .
"(You're fairly sure you don't/You don't know if you/You're positive you don't) have enough skill to reel this one in." = The fish is 8+ levels above your skill+gear. You can still reel it in until about 30+ above your level, where even if you deplete its stamina, it might cancel out with something along the lines of "your skill is too low to reel this one in".
"Your keen angler's senses tells you that this is the pull of X." = a critical bite. You get Angler's Discernment, the fish recovers less stamina for incorrect button presses, and most arrows will be gold. Duck Ring and Fisher's Rope increase the chance of this happening.
"This strength... You get the sense that you are on the verge of an epic catch!" = This has a chance to show up when you're at 95+ skill and hook a large fish. It usually means a high level legendary fish, but has a rare chance of showing up on lower level fish. It doesn't change anything about catching the fish.
A silver arrow (normal icon) shows which direction depletes your catch's stamina. A gold arrow (special icon) is a "critical hit" and depletes more stamina than a silver arrow.
"The likelihood of anglers receiving these golden opportunities depends on factors such as characters' fishing skills, the skill differential between characters and their prey, the phase of the moon, time of day, the affinity of prey for one's rod, moglification, and equipment."
It is possible to catch "items", things that are generally classified as neither fish nor monsters, such as Rusty Buckets or logs used in Woodworking. If you hook one of these using bait and successfully catch the item, the bait is retained. Any other result (such as canceling the cast with Esc key) results in losing your bait.
It is important to note that you will lose bait whether you cancel or fish up a monster when caught.
Synthesis image support temporarily raises your skill by 1 point. Advanced support raises your skill by 2 points, and requires a small fee based on your crafting rank. Synthesis Image Support can be obtained from the following Guild representatives:
Every ten skill levels, you are required to prove to the guild that you "have what it takes" by catching (or buying) a Fishing item of the guild's choosing. This item can be turned in once you have reached an "8" in skill (8, 28, 48, etc.) or higher (up to the cap). Once you have the requisite skill, speak with the Guild Master, Thubu Parohren.
Once you have attained the rank of Novice, you may begin to earn Guild Points with the Fisherman's Guild. Note that you may only accumulate Guild Points for one guild at a time, and if you switch guilds, you must wait for the next (Earth) day to trade items. The "Item of the Day" that the guild will accept changes every day at Japanese Midnight, and varies by crafting rank. Speak with Fennella, at (C-8) in Port Windurst to find out what the item is, determine the limit to how many points can be earned. Turn in items for points, and spend points on Guild Point Items.
A compilation of data retrieved from sightings of a giant snake-like beast living in the depths of Vana'diel's waters. There is enough information here to shed light on where you may find it...
Guild Merchants buy and sell craft related goods during the guild's hours of operation. Prices can vary greatly depending on supply and demand, and unlike Standard Merchants, they can sell out of inventory.
