Fishing
Fishing is one of the three ways to meet wild Pokémon, next to walking and surfing, and a skill with its own level (1–250). This page takes you from your first Old Rod to the Tidal Sanctum: higher levels let rarer Pokémon bite, unlock better rods and pay out milestone rewards.
Get your first rod
Section titled “Get your first rod”Talk to the Fishing Expert in Jubilife City, early in your Sinnoh journey. His quest gives you the Old Rod, and you can fish once you have it.
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Talk to the Fishing Expert. He is in Jubilife City and asks you to find three clowns around the city.
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Answer the clowns. Find each clown and answer their Pokémon question correctly. Every clown gives you a Coupon.
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Collect the Old Rod. Bring the three Coupons back to the Fishing Expert and accept his offer. You receive the
Old Rod. -
Equip the rod. Open the Fishing Skill window with the fishing rod button in the top-right panel and choose Equip Rod, or open your Bag and use the rod there.
The Fishing Skill window stays locked until you finish the Fishing Expert’s quest. An equipped rod leaves your bag; unequip it and it goes back.
Fishing has this window of its own: the Skills button in the same panel holds only mining and crafting.
How to fish
Section titled “How to fish”-
Find fishing water. Stand next to (or surf on) water where fishing Pokémon live. Every area’s fishing list is in Pokémon locations.
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Cast the line. Face the water and press F, or tap the fishing button that appears on screen. You will see “Trying to fish…”.
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Strike on the bite. Wait for the bite signal, then press F or tap again straight away. If you are quick enough, a wild battle starts.
You can rebind the fishing key in the settings. If you have no rod equipped the game asks you to assign one first, and you cannot fish while you are in a battle.
Your fishing level (up to 150) and a better rod give you more time to strike once the bite signal appears.
Fishing levels
Section titled “Fishing levels”Every Pokémon you hook gives fishing XP when the battle ends: the most for catching it, less for defeating it and the least for running away.
| The Pokémon you hooked | Fishing XP | In a Fishing Competition |
|---|---|---|
| You catch it | 80 | 120 |
| You defeat it | 40 | 60 |
| You run away | 20 | 30 |
Your fishing level also gives you an EXP Boost (extra experience for your Pokémon when they battle Pokémon you hooked) and a faster Encounter Speed (bites come sooner). Both are shown in the Fishing Skill window. They stop growing at fishing level 150. The levels after that, up to 250, lead to the Deep Line card style but add nothing else.
| Fishing level | EXP Boost | Encounter Speed |
|---|---|---|
| 1–20 | +10% | +0–8% |
| 21–40 | +15% | +9–18% |
| 41–60 | +20% | +19–31% |
| 61–80 | +25% | +31–40% |
| 81–100 | +30% | +40–49% |
| 101–120 | +35% | +50–59% |
| 121–140 | +40% | +59–68% |
| 141–150 | +45% | +69–73% |
| 151–250 | +45% | +73% |
Two things speed levelling up:
- Fishing Competitions. While one runs, Pokémon you hook in Spring Valley give the competition XP in the table above. See Hunting competitions.
- Priest Fishing Experience Boost. Use the fish priest button in the top-right panel to donate money. When the server’s donations reach the goal, everyone gets boosted fishing experience for a while.
Your fishing level decides which Pokémon can bite at all:
| Fishing level | What can bite |
|---|---|
| Any | Common and Uncommon Pokémon |
| 5 | Rare Pokémon |
| 10 | Very rare Pokémon |
| 20 | Ultra rare Pokémon |
| 80 |  Manaphy, roaming in Hoenn (fishing only) |
| 120 |  Kyogre in the Tidal Sanctum |
A few Rare and Very rare Pokémon can bite at any level, but the table holds for almost every fishing spot.
Level rewards
Section titled “Level rewards”Some levels give you an item straight away or open new content. The Fishing Skill window shows your next milestone; View All Milestones lists them all.
| Level | Reward | Details |
|---|---|---|
| 5 |  Pearl | Awarded automatically (x2) |
| 5 | Rare Fishing | Unlock Rare spawns |
| 10 |  Heart Scale | Awarded automatically (x3) |
| 10 | Very Rare Fishing | Unlock Very Rare spawns |
| 15 |  Star Piece | Awarded automatically (x1) |
| 20 |  Prism Scale | Awarded automatically (x1) |
| 20 | Ultra Rare Fishing | Unlock Ultra Rare spawns |
| 25 |  Fisherman Chest | Awarded automatically (x1) |
| 30 |  Mystic Water | Awarded automatically (x1) |
| 30 |  Good Rod | Earn and unlock ability to control the Good Rod |
| 35 |  Big Pearl | Awarded automatically (x3) |
| 40 |  Dratini Chest | Awarded automatically (x1) |
| 45 | Magikarp Surfboard Chest | Awarded automatically (x1) |
| 50 | Gyaradosite via Quest | Battle 'The Kingfisher' in Ochra Cliffs |
| 60 |  Abyssal Pearl | Awarded automatically (x15) |
| 65 |  Enhanced Bait | Awarded automatically (x3) |
| 65 | Phione | Obtainable via Quest |
| 70 |  IV Randomizer | Awarded automatically (x5) |
| 75 |  Magikarp Overhead (Shiny) | Awarded automatically (x1) |
| 80 |  Ability Patch | Awarded automatically (x1) |
| 80 | Manaphy | Roaming Legendary encounter |
| 85 |  Mythic Bait | Awarded automatically (x1) |
| 90 |  Dratini Overhead | Awarded automatically (x1) |
| 110 |  Mantine Surf Mount Chest | Awarded automatically (x1) |
| 120 | Kyogre | Sanctum Ticket from Fishing Guru's House |
| 125 |  Aether Rod | Ability to control the Aether Rod |
| 125 |  Mega-Gyarados Surf Mount Chest | Awarded automatically (x1) |
| 150 | Gold Fisherman Costume | Awarded automatically (x1) |
At fishing level 250 you can also claim the Deep Line card style for your Pokémon cards. View All Milestones lists it at its level; tap it to open the card style picker and claim it there. See card styles.
Two milestones send you somewhere:
- The Kingfisher. He is a fishing boss in Ochra Cliffs (Jvaloh). He battles you once you reach fishing level 50, and your first win on Hard gives a
Gyaradosite. When you can battle him again is in the champion list. - The
Phione quest. It opens at fishing level 65 and starts in the Canalave Library.
Fishing rods
Section titled “Fishing rods”Better rods give you more time to strike on the bite, make the treasure minigame easier and unlock extra features. You need the listed fishing level to equip a rod.
| Rod | Fishing level | Bait | Auto-Cast Mode | Module slots |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Old Rod | Any | No | No | 1 |
| Good Rod | 30 | No | Yes | 1 |
 Super Rod | 60 | Yes | Yes | 2 |
 Mythic Rod | 100 | Yes | Yes | 2 |
| Aether Rod | 125 | Yes | Yes | 3 |
How to get each rod:
| Rod | How to get it |
|---|---|
| Old Rod |
The Fishing Expert in Jubilife City (see above) |
| Good Rod |
Given to you automatically at fishing level 30 |
| Super Rod |
Buy it from the Master Fisherman for 75,000 F once you are fishing level 60. Caprio in Lilycove City also sells one, from fishing level 50 but for 250,000 F, after the Pacifidlog quests on the Diving page |
| Mythic Rod |
Buy the  Mythic Rod Blueprint from the Master Fisherman (200,000 F, fishing level 100), then craft the rod. The recipe also takes your Super Rod |
| Aether Rod |
Buy the  Aether Rod Blueprint (350,000 F, fishing level 125), then craft it from your Mythic Rod |
The Master Fisherman
Section titled “The Master Fisherman”The Master Fisherman runs the same shop in two places: the Fishing Guru’s House on Route 12 (Kanto) and a house on Route 226 (Sinnoh), which you can enter once you have all 8 Sinnoh badges. His items unlock as your fishing level rises.
| Item | Price (F) | Needs |
|---|---|---|
 Basic Bait |
5,000 | Fishing level 60 |
| Super Rod |
75,000 | Fishing level 60 |
| Mythic Rod Blueprint |
200,000 | Fishing level 100 |
| Aether Rod Blueprint |
350,000 | Fishing level 125 |
| Tidal Sanctum Ticket (1 hour) | 7,500 | Fishing level 120 and 8 Hoenn badges |
| Tidal Sanctum Ticket (8 hours) | 50,000 | Fishing level 120 and 8 Hoenn badges |
| Tidal Sanctum Ticket (24 hours) | 150,000 | Fishing level 120 and 8 Hoenn badges |
Auto-Cast Mode
Section titled “Auto-Cast Mode”Tick Auto-Cast Mode at the bottom of the Fishing Skill window; it needs a Good Rod or better. The game then handles the bite timing for you, so one press starts each attempt. The trade-off: bites take much longer to come than when you fish by hand.
- You cannot switch Auto-Cast Mode on or off in the middle of a cast or during a battle.
- Equipping the Old Rod (or no rod) turns it off.
Bait makes rarer Pokémon more likely to bite for a set number of fishing encounters. You can only have one bait active, and you cannot take it off: it stays until it is used up. The Fishing Skill window shows how many uses are left.
| Bait | Boosts | Lasts | Where to get it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic Bait | Rare and Very rare Pokémon | 500 encounters | Master Fisherman (5,000 F); treasure chests |
| Enhanced Bait | Ultra rare Pokémon | 1000 encounters | Crafting; treasure chests; fishing level 65 reward |
| Mythic Bait | Legendary Pokémon | 1500 encounters | Treasure chests; fishing level 85 reward |
- You need fishing level 60 and a rod equipped to apply bait.
- Bait only works with a Super Rod, Mythic Rod or Aether Rod. With an Old Rod or Good Rod it goes inactive. Inactive bait is not used up, and it switches back on when you equip a compatible rod.
- To apply bait, use it from your Bag, or choose Manage Bait in the Fishing Skill window.
Modules
Section titled “Modules”Modules attach to your rod and affect every Pokémon you hook until their uses run out. Buy them in the Donator Store for 300 Gems each.
| Module | Type | Effect | Lasts |
|---|---|---|---|
 Dreamweaver Module | Status Effect | Hooked Pokémon start the battle asleep | 50,000 encounters |
 Stormwire Module | Status Effect | Hooked Pokémon start the battle paralysed | 50,000 encounters |
 Ability Seeker Module | Special | Hooked Pokémon are more likely to have their Hidden Ability | 10,000 encounters |
- Apply a module with the + button in the Modules section of the Fishing Skill window, or use it from your Bag. You need a rod equipped and cannot do this in battle.
- Modules cannot be removed once applied. When one runs out you get a message and the slot frees up.
- You can only have one module of each type. Dreamweaver and Stormwire are both Status Effect modules, so you can run one of them plus the Ability Seeker, not both.
- Your rod decides how many modules are active. If you have more modules than slots (for example after switching to a smaller rod), the extra ones show dimmed and do nothing until you equip a bigger rod.
Treasure chests
Section titled “Treasure chests”Once in a while you hook a treasure chest instead of a Pokémon and a TREASURE FOUND! minigame opens. A blue indicator moves along a bar: hit STOP (or press Space) while it is inside the green zone around the red target line.
- Better rods make the minigame easier: the bar moves more slowly and the green zone is wider.
- Your fishing level helps a little too, up to level 100.
- Old and Good Rods always give one reward. A Super or Mythic Rod can give a second reward, and the Aether Rod can give up to three.
Each reward comes from one of four tiers, and higher tiers are rarer.
| Tier | Possible rewards |
|---|---|
| Low | IV Randomizer, Pearlx3,  Unallocated EV Reset, Basic Bait, Heart Scalex3,  Lure |
| Mid | Enhanced Bait, Abyssal Pearlx3,  Full EV Reset,  One Time Air Balloonx3,  One Time Focus Sashx3, Unallocated EV Resetx3, IV Randomizerx2,  Icicle Platex2, Big Pearl,  Big Nugget, Star Piece,  Splash Platex2,  PP Up, 5,000 F |
| High |  Comet Shard,  Pearl String, Full EV Resetx3, IV Randomizerx3,  PP Max,  Ability Capsule, Abyssal Pearlx5, 10,000 F |
| Legendary | Mythic Bait, 25,000 F, Ability Patch,  Dratini Scale |
Tidal Sanctum
Section titled “Tidal Sanctum”The Tidal Sanctum is a Hoenn map with only fishing and surfing spawns, made for high-level anglers. It is the home of Kyogre (Legendary, needs fishing level 120) and 
Basculegion (Ultra rare). See the full Tidal Sanctum spawn list.
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Meet the requirements. Reach fishing level 120 and earn all 8 Hoenn badges.
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Buy a ticket. Buy a Tidal Sanctum Ticket from the Master Fisherman: 1 hour, 8 hours or 24 hours.
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Use the ticket. Use it from your Bag while you are in Hoenn. You are taken to the Sanctum until the time runs out.
Quick tips
Section titled “Quick tips”- Fishing level unlocks rarity first. Before level 20, no rod or bait can hook an Ultra rare.
- Pair Dreamweaver or Stormwire with the Ability Seeker for easier catches with Hidden Abilities.
- If you hunt treasure chests, a better rod matters more than your level: it widens the green zone and adds extra rewards.
- Underwater areas and Abandoned Ships are covered on the Diving page.