How do you fish?

[LordStuff]

I tried fishing for a quest fish.
I got like... a few Basses, Trouts and Junk, that's all.
That time I used the 20% Pole and a 25% bait.

Did you catch anything quest related?
I watched a how to on YouTube, and he got his Golden Pole by creating small maps, finding the Angler and fishing in the right biome in about 5 minutes per quest.

Why the hell are there no drops for me? ^^

[Negative Guy]

I only completed 1 quest and that was with the reinforced fihing rod. With the wooden one i only got bass and trouts so try the reinforced fishing rod. I also got a few wooden crates with the reinforced rod.

[Bubbles the Soap Dragon]

Use a Sonar Potion, which is made from coral and Waterleaf, to see what fish is on the line. If it's not what you're looking for, don't click. Wait for the next bite instead. You can also fish in a bigger pool for better results.

[LordStuff]

Originally posted by slayer1056:

... so try the reinforced fishing rod....

I was using the Fleshcatcher 22% Power..

Originally posted by Space Dragon with a Jetpack:

Use a Sonar Potion....fish in a bigger pool for better results.

Alright, I'll try that!

[LordStuff]

So basically I kept fishing for 2 hours, using Sitting Duck's Fishing Pole (40% power) and worm as bait (25%) and Sonar Potions.

All I got was a single quest fish, the Angelfish.

I am seeing to it that the pools are 200 blocks + large, it is daytime and I make sure that I use the best bait I have.

Any advice on how to get more successful in fishing?

This game feature seems pretty unsettled so far.

How should that even work: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B68U5bazpqs

[Lauren]

I recommend you give the article on Fishing in the official Terraria Wiki a read. There are a lot of things that affect the quality of your fishing, but the most important are:

1. Your rod and bait. Higher power = better catch.
2. The size of the lake. 200+ connected water tiles and you should get no more trash, 1000+ tiles and you have a fair chance of getting even golden crates with the Sitting Duck and Worms. Bigger lakes also result in less time waiting between catches.
3. The size of the lake's surface. If it's a huge lake with a 5-tile wide surface, you'll still get trash. 20+ tiles wide should be good enough.
4. The time of the day. Best times are when the night starts and ends.
5. Full Moon and Rain make it even better.

There are also items and potions that give bonuses. For more info, again, check the wiki at gamepedia.

[LordStuff]

Originally posted by Seikatsukan:

I recommend you give the article on Fishing in the official Terraria Wiki a read. There are a lot of things that affect the quality of your fishing, but the most important are: ...

Thanks m8, I'll give it a try, I usually build very small holes and huge lakes..

Did the terraria.gamepedia contain that info? hm... maybe I just missed it :S

[Fantastic Fwoosh]

I make a square 21x21 pool to fish reliably from (It will have a 20x20 interior)

Haven't yet made any pools larger than that ATM, but it's good for making safe fishing enviroments.

[LordStuff]

I now tried making a 1000+ pool with 25+ blocks surface, but it didn't really change anything

[Fantastic Fwoosh]

Originally posted by Seikatsukan:

Originally posted by LordStuff.at:

I now tried making a 1000+ pool with 25+ blocks surface, but it didn't really change anything

I might not be understanding your problem then... what exactly is it you're trying to do?
I re-read your original post. Is it quest fish you're after? You can only get one of those when a quest is active, and only that of the specific quest. Basically, quest fish don't exist in the world until the Angler asks for them. Even then, you can fish only one unless you drop them to fish another.
You can, however, get the day's quest fish without asking the Angler to see which one it is, but you'll need to be lucky since you won't know where to fish.

Or just have a chest full of pre-prepared post-angler quest fish.

Last time i checked, it was possible to rarely catch quest fish (possibly fixed in update, ill check the notes) I've caught a fallen star-fish before, without the angler ever asking for it.

[LordStuff]

Yeah I'm going for quest fish, and I only try getting them on that specific day, and I tried all methods mentioned above, but I only got one fish in like 4 hours of trying... By now I'm using Sitting Duck's Pole (Travelling Merchant) with worms as bait (25%) and I don't catch anything worth.. I sure found 2 golden Crates and a few Iron and Wooden ones, but only 1 quest fish.

I can't belive that guy in the video, fishing all that fish in 5 minutes per quest..

[snake0250]

hmm, seems you are just unlucky then?

otherwise, pay attention to what the angler says, the quest fish can only be found in specific biomes, sometimes also only underground

EDIT: you can also get a fishing potion, made with crisp honey and waterleaf, to temporarily boost your fishing skill, could also help

also note, a specific quest only runs for one day, it will reset at daybreak

[LordStuff]

Yes, I'm already following all that.
I'm using http://terraria.gamepedia.com/Fishing to find out the biome, and I'm also sure that the next quest isn't triggered yet.

I could for sure try the fishing potion, but will another 15% make so much difference? After all I have the best pole you can acquire (before you get a better one as quest reward) and I'm using worms or Julia Butterflies (both 25%)... I could for sure farm for Lightning Bugs (35%) or even Tree Nymph Butterflies (50%, but they seem to be veeeery seldom..)

How long does it usually take you to find the fish you need? What poles and baits are you using / were you using before the quests.

[snake0250]

i've been using the fleshcatcher and later sitting duck's pole with fireflies and worms as bait

even in the beginning it took me at most about 10-15 minutes to get a quest fish, although i also skipped some quests

[Lamaman]

Hey, i've been wondering what does "Bait power" and "Fishing Power" mean?

[LordStuff]

I tried fishing in the ocean (I built a bridge of it, because I built an ocean farm there, so I dug a 20 blocks wide hole in the bridge) for Cap'n Tunabeard.
The whole ingame day passed. This happened two times by now (just for Cap'n Tunabeard)...
I'll try it on another map...