Destiny 2 – How to Fish

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Fishing is a relatively new activity introduced to Destiny 2. While not as in-depth as fishing systems from other MMOs, there are still plenty of reasons you should begin fishing today.

We will cover how to unlock fishing, what do to while fishing, and why fishing is important. Let’s get started!

Recommended Read: What Time Is Reset in Destiny 2?

To fish in Destiny 2, head to one of the fishing spots in the EDZ, Nessus, or Savathun’s Throne World and interact with it.

You can unlock fishing by completing the Gone Fishin quest, which gives you gain access to your Fishing Tackle.


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How to Unlock Fishing

Before you can begin fishing, you will need to unlock your Fishing Tackle. The quest line is pretty short, luckily.

Start by collecting the Into the Depths mission. Complete the first five steps to gain access to the Gone Fishin quest. Speak with Hawthorne to unlock your Fishing Tackle.

From here on, you will be sent to the three main fishing spots in the EDZ, Nessus, and Savathun’s Throne World. where the fishing tutorial will begin.

You will need to catch five fish per fishing spot before completing the quest and heading back to the H.E.L.M. Completion of this quest is not required.

As soon as you unlock your Fishing Tackle, you will have the ability to fish. It is recommended to finish the questline, however, as it rewards you with some much-needed Bait.


How to Fish in Destiny 2

Once you find a good fishing spot, you will begin by holding your interact key. This will cast your rod, consume one Bait, and start the fishing process.

Keep an eye on your bobber. As soon as it dips under the water, you will want to use your interact key to reel it in. You will then see your reward drop on the ground, your first fish!

Timing is everything when fishing. The better timing you have on your reel-in, the better loot you will receive. Aim for a Perfect Catch every time, if possible.

Just like gear, there are tiers of fishing rewards. You can receive either an Uncommon green fish, a Rare blue fish, a Legendary purple fish, or an Exotic yellow fish as a reward.

Focused Fishing Meter

When you get to a fishing spot, you may notice that there is a meter on the bottom left of your screen named Focus Fishing.

As this meter increases, so do you’re chances of catching Legendary and Exotic fish.

To raise the Focused Fishing meter, simply keep fishing.

The meter raises faster every time someone in the area picks up a Legendary or Exotic fish.

Pro Fishing Strat

To make the most out of your time spent fishing, you will first want to check your Tackle Box and see what fishing spots have increased activity for the day.

Load into the Zone with this fishing spot and see if anyone else is already there.

If not, you will want to load in again and again until you find an instance with at least three Guardians fishing. This will give you your best chance at filling the Focused Fishing meter quickly or joining a group that already has the meter filled out

The reason we want a full meter fast is because the fishing spot will disappear once a Public Event starts in your Zone.

The fishing spot will not reappear until the Public Event is complete. Once the fishing spot reappears, your Focused Fishing meter will reset.

To combat having to spend time refilling the Focused Fishing meter, groups of Guardians will leave all of the fishing rewards on the ground, never picking them up.

Wait until the Public Event comes and goes.

Once the fishing spot reappears, everyone in the group will pick up their rewards which will jumpstart the Focused Fishing meter, meaning everyone can enjoy increased rewards until the next Public Event comes around.

Where to Find Bait

While you can begin fishing without any Bait, you won’t be able to catch any rare fish.

Luckily, getting Bait is pretty simple. You will get Bait for completing any playlist activities, Public Events, Salvages, Deep Dives, and picking up Planetary Materials.

So by just playing the game normally, you should have plenty of Bait when it comes time to fish.

If you are really hurting for Bait, you can run some Rumble matches to for quick activity completions.

What to do with Fishing Rewards

After a long day of fishing, you will want to visit the H.E.L.M. and stop by your aquarium.

Here you can release your fish by interacting with the podium. This will grant you gear based on the Rarity of the fish you caught.

This makes fishing a great, passive way to farm Legendary Shards and Exotic armor pieces.

While not as quick as other methods, fishing gives you an opportunity to farm Exotic gear while you enjoy a show or video on the side.

What is worth noting is that you can also obtain Upgrade Materials from your fishing rewards, with Exotic fishing potentially rewarding Ascendant Shards, making fishing a great activity for newer players who aren’t yet leveled for Nightfall Ascendant Shard farming.


That’s everything there is to know about fishing in Destiny 2. This new activity is a welcome change of pace from traditional loot farming methods.

What do you think about fishing in Destiny 2? Let me know in the comments!

Opie Cain

Opie has played Destiny 2 since release. Crafting articles that capture the essence of this epic universe. Beyond this, he enjoys 3D printing and 3D modeling, along with social and competitive VR gaming.

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