You’re standing on the edge of a rusted pier in the Great Desert. The wind is howling, Eve is looking stoic as ever, and you’ve got a literal high-tech fishing rod in your hands. It feels a bit weird, right? One minute you’re parrying a Naytiba that looks like a nightmare’s fever dream, and the next, you’re trying to catch a Porcupinefish. But honestly, fishing in Stellar Blade isn’t just some throwaway minigame. It’s a whole vibe. And more importantly, it’s how you get some of the best gear and that sweet, sweet Ocean Maid outfit.
Getting started isn't automatic. You can't just find a puddle and start casting. First, you have to actually unlock the ability. This happens when you reach the Great Desert and meet Clyde. He’s the guy chilling at the Oasis, basically living his best life while the world falls apart. Talk to him. He’ll give you the basic rod and a few pointers. From there, it's on you.
How to fish in Stellar Blade without losing your mind
The actual mechanics are a bit twitchy. You hold the R2 trigger to cast, and you use the left thumbstick to aim your landing zone. Once you get a bite—and you’ll know because the controller vibrates like crazy—you hit R2 again to hook it. Now, the real fight starts. This isn't Animal Crossing. It’s a battle of attrition.
You’ll see a gauge on the screen. There’s a blue zone and a fish icon that moves like it’s had way too much caffeine. You have to keep the icon inside that blue zone by moving the left stick and tapping or holding the Square button. But here’s the kicker: the game changes the rules based on the fish's "tier." Small fish are easy. Large fish will fight back, depleting your stamina if you just mash buttons. You have to be patient. Sometimes you need to let go of the Square button to let the "tension" reset, otherwise, the line snaps and you're left with nothing but regret.
The bait situation matters more than you think
Don't just use whatever. Clyde sells bait, and you should buy all of it. Different fish crave different snacks. It’s basically a tier system:
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- Small Bait is for the little guys, like the Goldfish or the Mudskipper.
- Medium Bait gets you the Triggerfish and the Sea Bass.
- Large Bait is where things get serious, targeting Tuna and Great White Sharks.
- Special Bait is for the "Jumbo" category—the stuff of legends.
If you’re trying to complete the "Fishing Research" questline, you can't just sit in the Oasis all day. You’ve got to travel. The game tracks where you catch things, and some species only show up in specific spots, like the pond in Eidos 7 or the hidden little water pockets in the Wasteland.
Finding the best spots and the legendary fish
Most players get stuck trying to find the last few entries in the fish encyclopedia. It’s annoying. You’ll spend an hour catching the same Mackerel over and over. To fix this, you need to upgrade your rod. You do this by talking to Clyde and spending "Fishing Points" which you earn every time you successfully reel something in. Buy the Fishing Data items. They make the "struggle" bar move slower and increase your chances of hooking rare species.
The Oasis is the most convenient spot, but the fountain in Xion is actually surprisingly good for mid-tier fish. If you’re hunting the Whale Shark—the literal king of the minigame—you’re going to need the Bestial Bait. You can’t just buy that at the start; you have to earn it by proving you're actually a decent angler.
Honestly, the haptic feedback on the PS5 DualSense controller makes this way more immersive than it has any right to be. You can feel the "weight" of the fish. If it feels like a truck is pulling on the other end, it’s probably a shark. If it feels like a light vibration, it’s probably a tin can or a small trout.
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Why you should actually bother with this
Is it just for completionists? Sorta. But the rewards are legit. Catching 20 different types of fish unlocks the "Wondering Merchant" quest which leads to the Ocean Maid Nano Suit. It’s arguably one of the most popular outfits in the game. Plus, Clyde sells a lot of useful materials. If you’re low on Extreme Nano Elements for your gear upgrades, trading in fish is a much faster way to farm them than running around killing low-level mobs in the desert.
There’s also a hidden layer of lore here. The fish in Stellar Blade aren't exactly normal. They’re mutated, or they’ve adapted to the polluted waters of a dying Earth. Reading the descriptions in the fish menu gives you these tiny, depressing snippets of what happened to the planet's ecosystem. It’s a nice touch that makes the world feel more "lived in," or at least "died in."
Pro tips for the struggle phase
If you’re struggling with the button mashing, go into the game settings. There’s actually an accessibility option to change the "Rapid Button Presses" to a "Hold" action. This is a total game-changer. It takes the stress off your thumbs and lets you focus on the movement of the fish. No shame in using it—some of those legendary fish fight like they're bosses.
Wait for the "!" icon. Don't jump the gun. If you pull too early, you lose the bait. If you wait too long, the fish gets bored and leaves. It’s a goldilocks zone of timing. Also, keep an eye on your bait count. There is nothing worse than trekking all the way to a remote pond only to realize you ran out of Large Bait five minutes ago.
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Final checklist for the master angler
To wrap this up and get you back to the game, here is the basic path to mastery. Start at the Oasis and clear out Clyde's stock. Grind out the small and medium fish until you have enough points to buy the first two levels of Fishing Data. This is non-negotiable. Without that data, the rare fish are almost impossible to catch because their "escape" bar fills up way too fast.
Once you have the upgrades, head to Eidos 7. There’s a spot near the Clock Tower that has unique drops. Then, hit the Wasteland. There’s a small underground area with water that holds some of the weirder, nocturnal-looking species. Finally, go back to Clyde once you have 20 entries in your log. He’ll give you the quest for the final bait.
Take that bait to the deep water at the Oasis. That’s where the Whale Shark lives. It’s a long fight. It’ll probably take you two or three minutes of constant stick-wiggling and button-holding. But once you pull that massive thing out of the water, the trophy pops, and you can finally call yourself a master of Stellar Blade fishing.
Actionable Next Steps
- Travel to the Oasis in the Great Desert and speak to Clyde to unlock the fishing rod.
- Earn 200 Fishing Points by catching common fish to purchase "Fishing Data," which makes the minigame significantly easier.
- Toggle the "Simplified Controls" in the Accessibility menu if the rapid button mashing is causing physical fatigue or making you lose rare fish.
- Complete the Fishing Research quest by catching 20 unique species to unlock the Ocean Maid Nano Suit from Clyde's shop.