— A Guide to Fishing Tamriel
Fishing is one of several activities available in Elder Scrolls Online. It requires bait and a fishing hole. Bait can be gathered from various creatures around the world, such as beetles, rats, and butterflies as well as obtained via fishing or gathering plants. Fishing holes are numerous and close to shore. They are characterized by sparkling water and leaping fish. Different fish can be caught in different locales. Fish in different water types respond to different types of bait, and using advanced bait, which can be caught from fishing holes, increases the chance of landing rare ones.[verification needed — Does the so-called advanced bait really make any difference?]
Once at a fishing hole, the next step is to choose the type of bait. Using the correct type of bait for that water type will yield more success and prevent the appearance of Used Bait. If you get one, it means you are using the incorrect bait type for that fishing hole. While fishing, you also have a chance to reel in a Wet Gunny Sack instead of a fish, which contains miscellaneous crafting materials such as trait materials, tempers, style materials, or enchanting runes. When a fish is on the line, the float will sink into the water and your character will pull on the fishing rod. Activating it in time will bring in a fish.
Every fishing hole has 15 catches, except ones in the Imperial City, which have 30. It is possible to come across fishing holes with less catches, because players can abandon a fishing hole before it is emptied, leaving the rest of the catches for later players. On rare occasions, a fishing hole can respawn shortly after having been emptied, or even sometimes while you are currently fishing out of it.[verification needed]
When you catch a common fish, you are able to fillet it if you use it from your inventory. Doing so gives you a guaranteed Fish provisioning ingredient, and also has a very small chance of yielding a Perfect Roe, one of the provisioning ingredients used to brew Psijic Ambrosia (as well as Orzorga's Smoked Bear Haunch).
Types of Water
There are four types of water sources that you can fish from. As detailed in A Guide to Fishing Tamriel, certain types of bait work better in certain types of water, and different common fish are caught depending on the water type.
Foul
Foul water fishing holes can be found in fetid, murky pools of water such as sewers, swamps and near decomposing corpses.
River
River fishing holes can be found in moving bodies of fresh flowing water that drain into a lake or the ocean.
Lake
Lake fishing holes can be found in still bodies of water with deep holes or overgrowth.
Ocean
Ocean fishing holes are almost anywhere on the coast. Coastal cities, such as Ebonheart and Skywatch, have docks with fishing holes.
Types of Bait
Bait Guide | Fishing Guide | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Rare Fish
Aldmeri Dominion
Khenarthi's Roost | Foul | Lake | Ocean | River |
---|---|---|---|---|
None | None | Pyandonean Ray | None | |
Auridon | Foul | Lake | Ocean | River |
None | Ilyadifish | Blue Monkfish | Shimmerpike | |
Grahtwood | Foul | Lake | Ocean | River |
Bilious Catfish | Stickleback | Magrove Shark | Greater Fangfin | |
Greenshade | Foul | Lake | Ocean | River |
Viperfish | Jungle Bass | Zebra Pompano | Xylo Piranha | |
Malabal Tor | Foul | Lake | Ocean | River |
Ouze Toadfish | Z'en's Whitefish | Abecean Halibut | Strident Leechfin | |
Reaper's March | Foul | Lake | Ocean | River |
Slimeslither | Forest Bream | None | Strid Shad |
Daggerfall Covenant
Stros M'Kai | Foul | Lake | Ocean | River |
---|---|---|---|---|
None | None | Eltheric Grouper | None | |
Glenumbra | Foul | Lake | Ocean | River |
Hag Fen Hagfish | Cambray Perch | Azurain Flounder | Brook Trout | |
Stormhaven | Foul | Lake | Ocean | River |
Gray Loach | Silver Walleye | Alcaire Pike | Dreugh Shrimp | |
Rivenspire | Foul | Lake | Ocean | River |
None | Ichory Chub | Northpoint Cod | Ruby Tench | |
Alik'r Desert | Foul | Lake | Ocean | River |
Midget Salmon | Desert Pupfish | Bonefish | None | |
Bangkorai | Foul | Lake | Ocean | River |
None | Lake Snapper | Bjoulsae Hake | Prickleback |
Ebonheart Pact
Bleakrock Isle | Foul | Lake | Ocean | River |
---|---|---|---|---|
None | None | Inner Sea Scalyfin | None | |
Stonefalls | Foul | Lake | Ocean | River |
Scum Carp | Rainbow Zander | Akaviri Wrasse | Ash Shad | |
Deshaan | Foul | Lake | Ocean | River |
None | Mud Lamprey | Pikeblenny | Toadstool Tilapia | |
Shadowfen | Foul | Lake | Ocean | River |
Coelacanth | Histcarp | None | Shark Tadpole | |
Eastmarch | Foul | Lake | Ocean | River |
Ice Remora | King Sturgeon | Ghost Haddock | White River Pickerel | |
The Rift | Foul | Lake | Ocean | River |
Sulfursucker | Ilinalta Trout | None | Muskellunge |
Miscellaneous
Coldharbour | Foul | Lake | Ocean | River |
---|---|---|---|---|
Ghoulfish | None | None | None | |
Craglorn | Foul | Lake | Ocean | River |
None | Crag Salmon | None | Nedic Eel | |
Cyrodiil | Foul | Lake | Ocean | River |
Sewer Eel | Runmare Bream | Topal Fanche | Nibenay Trout | |
Hew's Bane | Foul | Lake | Ocean | River |
Keuppia | Bala Shark | Sparking Anglermouth | Firemouth | |
Imperial City | Foul | Lake | Ocean | River |
Aphotic Batfish | None | None | None | |
Wrothgar | Foul | Lake | Ocean | River |
Greater Ashmouth | Giant Hammerjaw | Crab-Slaughter-Crane | Chinlea |
Fishing Achievements
There are a total of 29 achievements associated with fishing (25 from the base game, 4 from DLCs). Every zone except the starter islands has 12 rare fish you can catch. Catching all of the rare fish in a zone will give you that zone's achievement. If you get all of the major zone achievements in one alliance, you'll receive another achievement for that alliance. Get all three of those, along with the starter island achievements and the separate ones for Cyrodiil and Coldharbour, and you'll receive the rare Master Fisher achievement. Note that the fish on the starter islands are not necessary for the alliance fishing achievements, but they are necessary for the Master Fisher achievement. Craglorn Angler and the DLC achievements are not needed to earn the Master Fisher achievement. Completing the Master Fisher achievement grants the title "Master Angler" and the dye "Slaughterfish Flesh Pink".
Auridon Angler (5 points) | Roost Angler (5 points) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Grahtwood Angler (5 points) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Greenshade Angler (5 points) | Dominion Fisherman (10 points) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Malabal Tor Angler (5 points) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Reaper's March Angler (5 points) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Alik'r Angler (5 points) | Stros Angler (5 points) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Bangkorai Angler (5 points) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Glenumbra Angler (5 points) | Covenant Fisherman (10 points) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Rivenspire Angler (5 points) | Master Fisher (50 points) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Stormhaven Angler (5 points) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Deshaan Angler (5 points) | Bleakrock Angler (5 points) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Eastmarch Angler (5 points) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Rift Angler (5 points) | Pact Fisherman (10 points) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Shadowfen Angler (5 points) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Stonefalls Angler (5 points) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Cyrodiil Angler (10 points) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Coldharbour Angler (5 points) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Craglorn Angler (5 points) | |||||
Imperial City Angler (5 points) | |||||
Wrothgar Master Angler (5 points) | |||||
Hooking Wrothgar's Biggest Catch (10 points) | |||||
Hew's Bane Master Angler (5 points) | |||||
Bugs
- Occasionally you will receive the message "You cannot fish in Werewolf form" while attempting to fish.
- This can be fixed by relogging.
- Sometimes while fishing at a lake in Auridon, you will catch both a Barbel and a Zebra Oto, the latter of which is a rare fish from The Rift, and will get credit for both.
- Some very few fishing holes will only give Used Bait.