Dredge: Complete Guide To Fishing

As much as people thing Dredge is about uncovering a great mystery, cosmic horror, and monsters from the deep, we know the truth. Dredge is just a chill fishing simulator. Who needs to know why the world is messed up when there are fish to be found, caught, recorded, and sold? Who doesn’t want vast wealth and an awesome boat? 

Fishing in Dredge is largely quite simple, but the amount of stuff that goes into it in addition to number of fishing methods makes it interesting. Not to mention the sheer quantity of fish and how to find them. The first thing you learn to do in Dredge is fish, but you won’t be able to catch every fish without some serious investment. 

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More Dredge content:

What Is Dredge? | How To Get Explosives | How To Get Research Parts | Music Box

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Rods

Rod fishing is the first form of fishing you will discover, and this is your primary method of fishing for most of the game. Fishing is a timing-based minigame which changes slightly depending on the fish you are trying to catch. Do note you can turn on an “auto-catching” system if you are struggling with the timing.

Rod fishing is made more complex by the number of rods you can unlock, and what each rod does. For example, you start with a pretty basic rod that can only catch fish in shallow waters. This is all well and good for the beginning of the game, but this won’t do later on. Some locations require hydraulic rods than can pull fish up from the deep ocean, or rods than can survive in volcanic temperatures. Others still require you to venture into the abyss itself and pull up some truly bizarre fish. 

Unlocking new rods comes from Research Parts you find scattered around the world. Some rods will also require you to complete certain quests. 

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Crab Pots

Crab Pots allow you to passively fish, and requires far less work than regular fishing. Early on you will be given a basic Crab Pot, and once you have it, you can start to buy more. The general idea is that you take your pots to a specific depth based on the Pot in question, and then leave it for a few days. 

Once they have been left for a while, you can return to them and take the fish to sell. As the name implies, this is a great way to catch Crab. Most Crab Pot catches are not worth much, but having a full hold of Pots out at all times can be very lucrative. 

You can also upgrade your Crab Pots with Research Parts unlocking better Pots that can catch rarer fish. 

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Trawling Nets

The final type of fishing you can unlock is Trawling Nets. These are vital to complete certain quests – specifically in the Stellar Basin. You can unlock Trawling Nets by unlocking them with Research Points then buying them from any Merchant. 

Trawling Nets are large nets you deploy behind your boat. As you sail around specific depths, you will automatically catch fish. This is the easiest method of fishing as it requires very little input from the player other than repairing the net from time to time. You can even Trawl whilst you rod fish allowing you to fill your holds quickly. 

You can unlock better nets by investing Research Points. 

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Encyclopedia

The most important tool when it comes to fishing is the Encyclopedia. This is because everything you could ever wish to know is in this book. Even if you don’t know what the fish is called, you can search where you can find it, and what methods of fishing you need to use. This lets you effortlessly hunt down fish so you can more effectively fill out your Encyclopedia. 

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That’s all we have on Dredge for now. Be sure to check out our other Guides and Walkthroughs for more Dredge content. Beware of the terrors hiding in the deep.