Fishing is a recreation that is commonly seen in the Pokémon world.

Zoey with a fishing rod in the anime

In the games

In core series games

Fishing is a way to catch Pokémon in the water. In fact, some Pokémon can only be caught by using a fishing rod. There are three fishing rods that are given out throughout the course of most games, and each one is given out by a Fishing Brother. Generation V includes only the Super Rod, which is given out by LookerBW or Cedric JuniperB2W2. In Generation VII, Pokémon Sun and Moon include only a Fishing Rod, given out by Lana. The Fishing Rod may additionally reel in items instead of Pokémon.

Equipment

Catching Pokémon

Generation I and Generation II

In Generation I and II, fishing is simply a matter of standing next to water and using the rod. Sometimes, it will hook a Pokémon and start a battle. Other times, it will catch nothing. There is a random chance of either happening, so if the rod catches nothing, players can cast it out again. The player can only fish from land, not while surfing.

Generation III

Starting with Generation III, the fishing mechanic became more complicated, as the player would have to pay attention and confirm as soon as the rod hooked a Pokémon, or else it would get away. A series of ellipses appear prior to the text "Oh! A bite!", which is when the player should press the A Button. In Pokémon Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald, this required a series of confirmations to reel in better Pokémon. Generation III also introduced the ability for Pokémon Trainers to fish off the back of a surfing Pokémon, which may be required to catch Feebas. This also made fishing on Route 4 possible. Starting from Emerald, if the first Pokémon in the player's party has the ability Suction Cups or Sticky Hold, the player is more likely to get a bite.

Generation IV

In Generation IV, when the player uses the rod, an exclamation mark-like sign pops up above the player, noting that they should push the A button to start the battle with the Pokémon they've encountered. As with Generation III, the Pokémon will go away if the player takes too long.

Generation V
Super Rod's Key Item obtain sprite from Generation V

In Generation V, fishing mechanics are mostly unchanged from Generation IV. However, by fishing in rippling water, different Pokémon can be caught, generally being rare Pokémon or the evolved forms of the Pokémon normally found. As such, this allows certain Pokémon such as Milotic and Poliwrath to be caught in the wild, while normally they would not. Furthermore, the Old and Good Rods are no longer available, only providing the player with a single rod to fish for Pokémon with.

Generation VI

In Generation VI, fishing mechanics remain mostly unchanged, with the removal of rippling water and the addition of consecutive fishing. The Old and Good Rods return in this Generation.

Consecutive fishing describes reeling in the same Pokémon in the same area repeatedly. Hooking multiple Pokémon in a row increases the chances of hooking a Shiny Pokémon, reaching a maximum chance of approximately 1% for a streak of 20 or more Pokémon. The game increases the chances of finding a Shiny Pokémon by generating extra personality values in an attempt to find one that results in a Shiny Pokémon, with the number of attempts depending on the size of the current streak. For every Pokémon added to the streak up to 20 Pokémon, the game will make two extra attempts to find a Shiny personality value; i.e., the number of attempts at any given point in the streak is 1 + 2 * streak_size, and caps at a maximum of 41 attempts when the streak is at least 20 Pokémon long. This effect stacks with the Shiny Charm's effect.[1]

The player is allowed to defeat, catch or simply run away from any encounters found this way without the chain breaking. The only ways to break the chain are by not reeling in any Pokémon, reeling in a different Pokémon or by exiting the area. It is possible to check the longest chain done by the player with a fishermen in Route 16.

Fishing near rocks and other impassable spaces (not including spaces occupied by Trainers) will raise the chances of hooking Pokémon. The more sides (north, south, east, or west) around the space where the bobber lands that are blocked by such obstacles, the higher the chances of hooking a Pokémon are. A space of land may also count as an obstacle on one side of the bobber, so long as it is not the only one. If three sides are blocked, every cast will hook a Pokémon.

Generation VII
Fishing Rod's Key Item obtain sprite from Generation VII

In Generation VII, the player can no longer fish in any body of water. Instead, in certain areas, there are piles of rocks at the bottom of the water where the player can fish to find Pokémon. Sometimes when the player reels in their line, they may find an item instead of a Pokémon. In each area with fishing spots, at least one of the rock piles will have bubbles rising from it to the surface, and if the player fishes at that spot, they will be able to more commonly find Pokémon that would be rare at the other spots. As soon as the player reels in their line after they find any Pokémon or item from such spots, the bubbles will disappear until the player re-enters the area. The bubbles will also disappear if the player moves too quickly near the spot, if they move over it, or if they reel in their rod too quickly. Once the bubbles disappear, the encounter rate returns to that of other fishing spots.

In the Alola region, there are fishing spots at Seaward Cave, Kala'e Bay, Melemele Sea, Paniola Town, Brooklet Hill, Akala Outskirts, Malie Garden, Secluded ShoreSM, Seafolk Village, Poni WildsSM, Poni Breaker Coast, Vast Poni Canyon, Poni Meadow, Poni Gauntlet, and Routes 7, 8, 9, 13, 14, and 15.

The different types of fishing rods are also all replaced by a single "Fishing Rod" in Generation VII. This Fishing Rod cannot be used from the Bag, but instead, when the player approaches a fishing spot, the game prompts the player with the option to press the A button to use the Fishing Rod. Some fishing spots may be accessible from land, while others may only be accessible from water. If the player wishes to fish at a spot in the middle of water, they can only do so using the Poké Ride Lapras Paddle.

Appearance

Old Rod XYORAS.png Good Rod XYORAS.png Super Rod XYORAS.png Fishing Rod SMUSUM.png
Old Rod model from
Generation VI
Good Rod model from
Generation VI
Super Rod model from
Generation VI
Fishing Rod model from
Generation VII

In spin-off games

PokéPark: Fishing Rally DS

Main article: PokéPark: Fishing Rally DS
Fishing in PokéPark: Fishing Rally DS

PokéPark: Fishing Rally DS is a game focused on fishing for Pokémon. Points are earned for the size, rarity, and species of the caught Pokémon. Up to five Pokémon can be stored at once, and high scores could be seen at Pokémon Centers, while the game was still available for download.

Pokémon: Magikarp Jump

Main article: Pokémon: Magikarp Jump

Pokémon: Magikarp Jump is a game where player fishes and trains generations of Magikarp to jump as high as they can and win Magikarp jumping leagues. Magikarp are fished with Old Rod, with the player being given increasingly better variants of Old Rod (So-So, Good, Great, Rare, Pro's, and Supreme) as they progress that can fish new Magikarp patterns.

In the anime

In the main series

Iris holding a Super Rod

Numerous episodes of the anime have featured the group fishing. Rather than using bait, lures with Pokémon designs are used. In the first episode of the anime, Pokémon - I Choose You!, Misty was shown fishing shortly before Ash runs in to her. At the Safari Zone, a fishing rod is distributed with the Safari Balls, as seen in EP035. Ash and Misty both participated in a Seaking Catching competition in Hook, Line, and Stinker.

In Whiscash and Ash, a fisherman named Sullivan believed that the secret to catching the Whiscash he was looking for, was finding the right lure. In On Olden Pond, Ash and his friends visited a lake, which had used to be a popular fishing resort. Ash, Brock, and May tried fishing from the lake, with Ash eventually hooking up a Crawdaunt. Ash attempted to battle the Crawdaunt with his Corphish, but the Ruffian Pokémon was soon defeated by its evolved form, which then proceeded to destroy the group's loaned fishing rods. It was later revealed that the Crawdaunt belonged to a man named Mr. Saridakis, who had once tried to purchase the lake in order to build an amusement park over it, but Tiffany, the owner of the lake, had refused to sell it. As a result, he had unleashed his Crawdaunt to the lake to scare off the people who came to fish there. After being saved from drowning by a Dragonair living in the lake, Mr. Saridakis decided to cancel his plans. Misty has a collection of lures, including a special lure based on herself that she believes is the best. She sent it to Ash as a gift in The Unbeatable Lightness of Seeing. Ash used this lure in Buizel Your Way Out of This to try to catch a powerful Buizel.

Cilan holding a fishing rod

In Facing Fear with Eyes Wide Open!, Cilan used his fishing skills to catch a Stunfisk that was preventing Ash and Oshawott from retrieving plants at the bottom of a lake to cure their poisoned Pokémon. Like others before him, Cilan uses a fishing lure based on himself. In A Fishing Connoisseur in a Fishy Competition!, Cilan showed his fishing skills again by catching a Basculin in Team Rocket's fake fishing competition. In SS027, Cilan was seen using his fishing rod once again, this time hooking up a wild Gyarados. Later in the episode, he used his rod in an attempt to pull Gyarados back to its home lake, but was disturbed by Amer and his robotic Qwilfish. A Super Rod made its debut in the anime in Climbing the Tower of Success! as the item Iris had to find for a scavenger hunt. In Best Wishes Until We Meet Again!, Cilan mentioned that Mr. Briney from Dewford Town was going to host the Old Rod Fishing Rally soon, prompting him to depart for Johto in order to participate in the said competition.

In Going for the Gold!, Ash and his friends met a fisherman named Rodman, who was trying to fish up a Shiny Magikarp with a Magikarp-shaped lure. Ash, Serena, and Clemont decided to try fishing too, with Ash giving the inexperienced Serena instructions of how to do it correctly. While fishing, Serena hooked up a Corsola, which she tried to battle with her Fennekin, but it simply hid itself behind Serena when Corsola tried to use Water Gun on it, causing the Coral Pokémon to get away. Afterwards, Rodman let Ash and his friends keep the fishing rods he had loaned them. The same rods reappeared in An Undersea Place to Call Home!, where Ash used one of them to hook up a Skrelp. A fishing competition was a part of the Pokémon Summer Camp, as shown in Day Three Blockbusters!. The Pokémon hooked up during the competition included Ash's Alomomola, Serena's Staryu, Clemont's Corphish, Tierno's Magikarp, Shauna's Tentacool, and Trevor's Wailord. Bonnie also participated the competition, but her possible catch wasn't shown.

In SS037, Clemont and Bonnie participated in a fishing competition held in Lumiose City. Clemont intended to use his high-tech fishing rod to win, but Cilan, also taking part in the competition, commented him on his way of approach to fishing. With Cilan's advice, Bonnie managed to reel in a Clawitzer, which, due to it then proceeding to attack them, was driven away by Cilan's Stunfisk, by which time the competition already ended. Later in the episode, Clemont and Cilan combined Clemont's rod and Cilan's fishing skills to save Bonnie from a runaway subway cart.

In Yo, Ho, Ho! Go, Popplio!, Professor Kukui took the Pokémon School class on a fishing lesson, which he gave Lana to lead. Lana, being the most skilled fisher of the group, managed to fish up many different Water Pokémon, while Ash and Kiawe were having trouble finding anything at all, and Sophocles was too busy programming his high-tech rod to even try. Lillie, however, managed to surprise everyone by hooking up a Milotic, but her line snapped before she could reel the Tender Pokémon in, causing it go get away.

Team Rocket was seen fishing in The Sun, the Scare, the Secret Lair! while attempting to catch new Alolan Pokémon, but to no avail. Jessie used a lure based on Ekans, James's based on Koffing, and Meowth's based on himself.

Fishing was a central plot element in Big Sky, Small Fry!, where both Ash and Lana as well as Team Rocket tried to fish up the Totem Pokémon of Brooklet Hill. While Team Rocket was taken away by Bewear in the middle of their fishing, Lana managed to hook up the Totem Pokémon, a School Form Wishiwashi, almost immediately, and proceeded to battle it. She was eventually able to defeat the Totem Pokémon, receiving a Waterium Z as a reward.

In Pokémon Origins

Red fishing with a Super Rod

Fishing was featured a couple of times during Pokémon Origins.

Red obtained an Old Rod from the Vermilion Fishing Guru in File 2: Cubone, and a Super Rod from the Silence Bridge Fishing Guru in File 3: Giovanni. Soon after obtaining the latter, he was seen using it to capture himself a Psyduck.

Red was also seen fishing with the Super Rod in File 4: Charizard, although he did so merely to get some time to think about the mysterious Pokémon in Cerulean Cave.

In the manga

In the Pokémon Pocket Monsters manga

The Old and Super Rod appeared in Pokémon Pocket Monsters.

Artwork

RG Old Rod.png RG Good Rod.png RG Super Rod.png
Old Rod Good Rod Super Rod


Trivia

The exclamation point above the walking Pokémon
  • In Generation I, it is possible to fish in the bottom of the statues in Gyms (except for the Saffron and Cinnabar Gyms) or any room of the Elite Four at Indigo Plateau. However, when using the Super Rod in any Gym or Elite Four room other than Cerulean Gym or Lorelei's room, the game will say "Looks like there's nothing here."
  • In Generation I, the only Pokémon that can be fished out by the Old Rod is Magikarp, all of which would be Level 5.
    • It even lures Magikarp where wild Pokémon can't normally be caught, such as Lorelei's room at the Indigo Plateau.
  • In Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver, the exclamation point will occasionally appear above the partner Pokémon instead of above the player's sprite.
  • The Super Rod is the only fishing rod that is obtainable in Generation V. The Old and Good Rods, while still existent in the game's programming, cannot be obtained without hacking and cannot be used; if hacked in, they can be held by a Pokémon unlike legitimate Key Items.


In other languages

Old Rod

Language Title
Japan Flag.png Japanese ボロのつりざお Shabby Fishing Rod
Chinese Cantonese 破舊釣竿 Pogauh Diugōn
破爛的釣竿 *
Mandarin 破舊釣竿 / 破旧钓竿 Pòjiù Diàogān *
破爛的釣竿 Pòlàn-de Diàogān *
阿里不達釣竿 Ālǐbùdá Diàogān *
Denmark Flag.png Danish Gammel fiskestang*
Gammel stang*
The Netherlands Flag.png Dutch Oude hengel*
Finland Flag.png Finnish Vapa
France Flag.png French Canne
Germany Flag.png German Angel*
Alte Angel*
Italy Flag.png Italian Amo Vecchio
South Korea Flag.png Korean 낡은낚싯대 Nalgeun Naksitdae
Poland Flag.png Polish Stara Wędka
Brazil Flag.png Brazilian Portuguese Vara Antiga
Spain Flag.png Spanish Caña Vieja
Sweden Flag.png Swedish Gammalt spö*

Good Rod

Language Title
Japan Flag.png Japanese いいつりざお Good Fishing Rod
Chinese Cantonese 好釣竿 Hóu Diugōn
優秀釣竿 *
Mandarin 好釣竿 Hǎo Diàogān *
優秀釣竿 Yōuxiù Diàogān *
超級釣竿 Chāojí Diàogān *
Denmark Flag.png Danish God fiskestang*
God stang*
The Netherlands Flag.png Dutch Goede hengel*
France Flag.png French Super Canne
Germany Flag.png German Profiangel
Italy Flag.png Italian Amo Buono
South Korea Flag.png Korean 좋은낚싯대 Jo-eun Naksitdae
Brazil Flag.png Brazilian Portuguese Vara Boa
Spain Flag.png Spanish Caña Buena
Sweden Flag.png Swedish Bra spö*

Super Rod

Language Title
Japan Flag.png Japanese すごいつりざお Great Fishing Rod
Chinese Cantonese 厲害釣竿 Laihhoih Diugōn *
超強釣竿 Chīukèuhng Diugōn *
特級釣餌 *
Mandarin 厲害釣竿 / 厉害钓竿 Lìhài Diàogān *
超強釣竿 Chāoqiáng Diàogān *
超級釣竿 Chāojí Diàogān *
上等釣竿 Shàngděng Diàogān *
Finland Flag.png Finnish Supervapa
France Flag.png French Mega Canne
Germany Flag.png German Superangel
Italy Flag.png Italian Super Amo
South Korea Flag.png Korean 대단한낚싯대 Daedanhan Naksitdae
Poland Flag.png Polish Super Wędka
Brazil Flag.png Brazilian Portuguese Super Vara*
Super Bastão *
Russia Flag.png Russian Супер-Удочка Super-Udochka
Spain Flag.png Spanish Supercaña
Súper Caña*

Fishing Rod

Language Title
Japan Flag.png Japanese つりざお Fishing Rod
Chinese Cantonese 釣竿 Diugōn
Mandarin 釣竿 / 钓竿 Diàogān
France Flag.png French Canne à Pêche
Germany Flag.png German Angel
Italy Flag.png Italian Amo
South Korea Flag.png Korean 낚싯대 Naksitdae
Brazil Flag.png Brazilian Portuguese Vara de Pesca
Spain Flag.png Spanish Caña

So-So Old Rod

Language Title
Japan Flag.png Japanese いいボロのつりざお Good Shabby Fishing Rod
Chinese Cantonese 較好的破舊釣竿 Gaauhóu-dīk Pogauh Diugōn
Mandarin 較好的破舊釣竿 / 较好的破旧钓竿 Jiàohǎo-de Pòjiù Diàogān
France Flag.png French Canne à Pêche d'Occasion
Germany Flag.png German Gute Alte Angel
Italy Flag.png Italian Amo Vecchio Buono
South Korea Flag.png Korean 좋은 낡은낚싯대 Jo-eun Nalgeun Naksitdae
Spain Flag.png Spanish Caña Decente

Good Old Rod

Language Title
Japan Flag.png Japanese すごいボロのつりざお Great Shabby Fishing Rod
Chinese Cantonese 厲害的破舊釣竿 Laihhoih-dīk Pogauh Diugōn
Mandarin 厲害的破舊釣竿 / 厉害的破旧钓竿 Lìhài-de Pòjiù Diàogān
France Flag.png French Canne à Pêche Neuve
Germany Flag.png German Tolle Alte Angel
Italy Flag.png Italian Amo Vecchio Speciale
South Korea Flag.png Korean 대단한 낡은낚싯대 Daedanhan Nalgeun Naksitdae
Spain Flag.png Spanish Caña Estupenda

Great Old Rod

Language Title
Japan Flag.png Japanese きれいなボロのつりざお Beautiful Shabby Fishing Rod
Chinese Cantonese 漂亮的破舊釣竿 Piuleuhng-dīk Pogauh Diugōn
Mandarin 漂亮的破舊釣竿 / 漂亮的破旧钓竿 Piàoliang-de Pòjiù Diàogān
France Flag.png French Bonne Canne à Pêche
Germany Flag.png German Schöne Alte Angel
Italy Flag.png Italian Amo Vecchio Magnifico
South Korea Flag.png Korean 고운 낡은낚싯대 Goun Nalgeun Naksitdae
Spain Flag.png Spanish Caña Guay

Rare Old Rod

Language Title
Japan Flag.png Japanese きちょうなボロのつりざお Precious Shabby Fishing Rod
Chinese Cantonese 珍貴的破舊釣竿 Jāngwai-dīk Pogauh Diugōn
Mandarin 珍貴的破舊釣竿 / 珍贵的破旧钓竿 Zhēnguì-de Pòjiù Diàogān
France Flag.png French Super Canne à Pêche
Germany Flag.png German Teure Alte Angel
Italy Flag.png Italian Amo Vecchio Prezioso
South Korea Flag.png Korean 귀중한 낡은낚싯대 Gwijunghan Nalgeun Naksitdae
Spain Flag.png Spanish Caña Lujosa

Pro's Old Rod

Language Title
Japan Flag.png Japanese こだわりボロのつりざお Choice Shabby Fishing Rod
Chinese Cantonese 講究的破舊釣竿 Gónggau-dīk Pogauh Diugōn
Mandarin 講究的破舊釣竿 / 讲究的破旧钓竿 Jiǎngjiù-de Pòjiù Diàogān
France Flag.png French Canne à Pêche de Pro
Germany Flag.png German Exquisite Alte Angel
Italy Flag.png Italian Amo Vecchio Intenditori
South Korea Flag.png Korean 구애 낡은낚싯대 Guae Nalgeun Naksitdae
Spain Flag.png Spanish Caña Profesional

Supreme Old Rod

Language Title
Japan Flag.png Japanese ス一パ一ボロのつりざお
Chinese Cantonese 超棒的破舊釣竿 Chīupáahng-dīk Pogauh Diugōn
Mandarin 超棒的破舊釣竿 / 超棒的破旧钓竿 Chāobàng-de Pòjiù Diàogān
France Flag.png French Canne à Pêche Ultime
Germany Flag.png German Super Alte Angel
Italy Flag.png Italian Amo Vecchio Pro
South Korea Flag.png Korean 슈퍼 낡은낚싯대
Spain Flag.png Spanish Caña Suprema

References


Project ItemDex logo.png This item article is part of Project ItemDex, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on all items.