Fishing

Fishing
Link fishing in Ocarina of Time
First appearance	Link's Awakening (1993)
Appearances	Link's Awakening Ocarina of Time Twilight Princess Phantom Hourglass Majora's Mask 3D Breath of the Wild
Location(s)	(Link's Awakening) Fishing Pond (Ocarina of Time) Fishing Pond (Twilight Princess) Fishing Hole Various other locations (Phantom Hourglass) Great Sea (Majora's Mask 3D) Swamp Fishing Hole Ocean Fishing Hole
Objective	Catching fish
Proprietor	(Link's Awakening) Fisherman (Ocarina of Time) Pond Owner (Twilight Princess) Hena (Majora's Mask 3D) Pond Owner

"How about some fishing, little buddy? I'll only charge you 10 Rupees..."

— Fisherman

Fishing is a recurring mini-game from the Legend of Zelda series. Using a Fishing Rod, Link can fish to obtain various items and achieve various goals.

Appearances

The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening

Link can fish at the Fishing Pond in Mabe Village. If he manages to catch the big fish underneath the ridge, he is rewarded with a Piece of Heart. Fishing costs ten Rupees to play. Link can win five Rupees for catching a small fish and twenty for catching one of the two big fish.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

Link can fish in the Fishing Pond near Lake Hylia. His biggest catch will be stored in the fish tank near the entrance, unless he catches the legendary Hylian Loach, which the Pond Owner releases. If Link has the Stone of Agony, and the controller has a Rumble Pack attached, the controller will vibrate in response to fish biting the rod.

If Link catches a fish weighing 9 pounds or more as a child, he will be rewarded with a Piece of Heart. As an adult, if Link catches a fish weighing 16 pounds or more, the Pond Owner will give him the Golden Scale. The largest fish can usually be found in the middle of the pond, or near the curved log. To reduce the distance from fish, Link can slowly walk into the water until it is about up to his shoulders. This allows him to reel fish in faster.

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

Link can fish in all bodies of water. The Fishing Hole owned by Hena is the prime location to fish, and Link can gain many valuable items here, such as an Empty Bottle.

Interestingly, Link can fish in lava, but he will not catch anything. Also, if Link fishes in certain areas, he can catch Bomb Fish or Skullfish, the former increasing Link's supply of Water Bombs by one. Skullfish will not be recorded in the journal, because they are 'forbidden'. Humorously, the Fishing Rod can also be used to distract Ganondorf during the final duel.

The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass

Link is given the Fishing Rod by the Old Wayfarer. Once received, Link can cast his line in the Great Sea to catch various fish. A sidequest can be completed in which Link catches every kind of fish in the Great Sea: Skippyjack, Toona, Loovar, Rusty Swordfish, and Neptoona. Upon catching every kind of fish, Link is given a Heart Container as a reward.

The Legend Of Zelda: Majora's Mask 3D

Two fishing holes that were not previously in Majora's Mask are in Majora's Mask 3D: the Swamp Fishing Hole and the Ocean Fishing Hole. Link must pay 50 Rupees or use a Fishing Hole Pass to fish. Link can use either a standard rod or one with the Sinking Lure. Each hole has 10 different fish types. Link can also wear the Fierce Deity Mask inside, but the Pond Owner will not let Link out, fearing he will scare away his fishers and wondering how Link even entered the fishing pond.

The leitmotif of Kakariko Village is exclusive to both Fishing Holes; nowhere else can the song be heard.

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

Unlike past games, where fishing was done with a Fishing Rod, Link can instead use various methods to fish. Unlike past games, Link can eat the fish he catches thus they can be used as healing items. Additionally the fish he catches can be used in Cooking to increase the health restored or to create various food dishes. As a result, fishing like hunting is treated as a way for Link to acquire food that allows him to survive in the wilds of Hyrule during his quest. Link can take pictures of fish to add them to the Hyrule Compendium which gives Link data on various fish species such as common locations and cooking effects.

Fish inhabit most rivers, lakes, ponds, small pools, seas, and even Hot Springs with species occasionally varying by region. Additionally, the fishermen in Lurelin Village often use Seagulls to find schools of sea dwelling Porgy as they tend to flock over schools of fish.

Fish Bait

Link can attract fish by throwing food materials into the water to act as bait. Different fish are attracted by certain kinds of food, though generally mushrooms work the best. However using food can result in Link losing the food he uses depending on the fishing method used. Additionally using food as bait is completely optionally and in most cases unnecessary when using certain methods.

Hand-Fishing

The main way Link can catch fish is by simply swimming near them and picking them up, this Link can catch fish bare handed. However fish tend to flee and Link losses Stamina as he swims and will sink if he runs out. Link can increase his swimming speed can be increased slightly by removing armor, of course he can also wear Armor that increases his swimming speed and/or his ability to swim such as the Opal Earrings, Zora Helm, Zora Armor, and Zora Greaves. Link can also use their tendency to flee to his advantage by scaring them into swimming right onto dry land, which renders them unable to escape, allowing Link to pick them up as they flop helplessly on the ground.

Bowfishing

In addition to fishing by hand, Link can also use Bowfishing instead, which involves shooting fish with Arrows which will kill them causing them to float to the surface allowing Link to collect them easily. As the effect of Shock Arrows is increased when they come in contact with water or rain, Link can use Shock Arrows to take out whole groups of fish. However bowfishing causes Link's bows to lose durability with each shot and Link's arrows can run out. As fish die with one hit, Link can use weaker and easily obtained bows for fishing, while saving his stronger and more rarer bows for combat and hunting big game on land. Bowfishing allows Link to attack fish from shore, a Raft, or atop a Cryonis Rune block.

Spearfishing

Spears can be used to kill fish by throwing them at fish in the water. While this is similar to bowfishing, spears have less range and can usually only take out a single fish. Additionally, Link must recover the spear to use it again, though this method allows him to both collect the fish and retrieve his spear. Metal Spears can be used to kill fish just as easily as wooden spears, though most tend to sink, which can prove problematic as it may be too deep for Link to pick up, forcing him to use Magnesis Rune to recover it. Wooden spears are better as they tend to float back to the surface making retrieving them easier. Generally the best Spear to use for spearfishing is the Fishing Harpoon as it is designed to be used in this manner, will float back to the surface, and can easily be obtained in Lurelin Village. Additionally, Enhanced Lizal Spear and Zora Spear also works well as they too is designed for spearfishing.

Remote Bomb Fishing

One of the most effective and less costly way to fish is by using Remote Bombs. Both types of Remote Bomb can be used in water and kinetic shockwave generated by their detonation can take out entire schools of fish. As Remote Bombs are rechargeable, Link effectively never runs out of Remote Bombs allowing him to use them as much as he wants. Though extremely effective, it is the least sporting method of fishing in Breath of the Wild, and Link is not penalized by doing so. It should be noted that a second bomb will destroy any ungathered fish, it is thus better to use one bomb at a time and gather each catch during cooldown.

Non-canonical appearances

Non-canon warning: This article or section contains non-canonical information that is not considered to be an official part of the Legend of Zelda series and should not be considered part of the overall storyline.

The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask

Although it never made it into the final product, Shigeru Miyamoto told Famitsu that there was going to be a fishing mini-game. In the game, Link would be fishing for the legendary Jabu-Jabu. If he managed to catch the giant fish it would have effects such as halting the fall of the Moon.

Non-canon warning: Non-canonical information ends here.