DREADMOOR how to fish: Rods, Bait and Controls

To fish in DREADMOOR, collect the Simple Rod after your first sleep at the Trading Post lodging, equip Earthworm at the introductory fishing spot, and cast toward the splashes. Wait for a bite, pull against the fish's movement to tire it, and reel while keeping Line Tension under control. Finish with the Land Fish interaction when it appears; later catches require different bait and, for Harpooners, a moving lure.

Get the Simple Rod and reach the fishing platform

The opening route to your rod starts with Gill and Bozur, who provide access to the lodging at the Trading Post. Move your chest inside from the pier, repair the damaged wall, and sleep before looking for the fishing equipment. When you wake, use the radio to speak to Gill and collect the Simple Rod from the table beside the couch. This places collecting the rod after the first sleep in the opening sequence.

Leave through the back door and head down the steps toward the fishing platform behind the Dry Dock. Speak to Gill and Bozur there for the introductory fishing instructions before starting your first catch. The marked fishing spot is where you select the Simple Rod and Earthworm to begin catching Snappers. Follow that initial pairing for the tutorial; the bait choices for Softgrazers and Harpooners are different and come into play as you progress.

Select your equipment and cast into a bite zone

With the documented keyboard setup, look off the pier at the fishing spot and press F to open its fishing information. This view shows the fish type at the spot alongside the bait and rod you are using. Check that the introductory setup shows the Simple Rod and Earthworm, then press F again to start fishing. The equipment view gives you a chance to check the target and your selected gear before casting into the water.

For the documented mouse controls, hold the left mouse button to aim, then release it to cast toward a bite zone. At the introductory spot, aim toward the splashes on the water and wait for the bite prompt before setting the hook. The Snapper tutorial specifically warns against twitching the gear while waiting because doing so can scare the fish away. If the input method feels uncomfortable, fishing control options for mouse and keyboard can be changed in settings.

Tire the fish, manage tension and land the catch

After hooking a fish, move the rod against the direction it swims to tire it out. If the fish pulls left, move the rod right, and change your movement when the fish changes direction. Watch its Stamina as you work against its movement, then reel it closer once it is tired. Under the documented mouse controls, holding the left mouse button reels the line, so pay attention to both the fish's movement and the strain while retrieving it.

Line Tension is the limit you need to watch throughout the fight, including when the fish is close enough to retrieve. If tension approaches its maximum or enters the red zone, release the left mouse button and stop reeling until the strain decreases. Continuing to reel under excessive tension can snap the line and lose the fish. The tutorial also warns that letting the fish swim too far strains the line, so tension management involves watching its distance as well as your reeling.

A fish can recover Stamina during retrieval, so an earlier period of exhaustion does not mean the fight is finished. When its Stamina recovers, focus on tiring it again instead of forcing it closer with continued reeling. Keep responding to its swimming direction and checking Line Tension as you bring it back toward you. When the Land Fish interaction becomes available, use it to complete the catch, and keep the fish if you need it for a contract.

Match the bait and movement to the fish

The supplied bait pairings are Earthworm for Snapper, Wind-Up Tin for Softgrazer, and Rainbow Fin for Harpooner. Snappers and Softgrazers use a cast-and-wait approach, with the bite coming after you place the bait and wait. Harpooners respond to a moving lure, so their approach differs from the stationary wait used for the introductory Snapper. Choose the bait for the species you are targeting and use that species' approach before switching to the hooked-fish fight.

To attract a Harpooner, cast Rainbow Fin into the splashing area and retrieve it slowly through the water. The lure needs enough movement to encourage pursuit without moving so quickly that the following fish cannot keep up. Pausing for too long can also make a pursuing predatory fish lose interest, so avoid treating this retrieval like the Snapper waiting phase. Once the Harpooner bites, return to the same Stamina and Line Tension management used to tire and land your other catches.

Craft Wind-Up Tin and Rainbow Fin as you progress

In the documented opening progression, fully repair and clean the boat, speak to John the Fifth, then return to Gill and Bozur for the next assignment. This sequence leads to crafting Wind-Up Tin at the Workbench in the Dry Dock. The recipe uses one Metal Plate and one Fish Meat, giving you the bait paired with Softgrazer. After crafting it, enter the boat and sail to the back of the Dry Dock, where the walkthrough places Softgrazers in a marked fishing spot.

The Softgrazer assignment connects the catch to hull reinforcement: processing the requested fish provides the scales needed for that work. The later Harpooner assignment calls for crafting Rainbow Fin at the same Dry Dock Workbench. Rainbow Fin requires one Fish Meat, one Metal Plate and one Chromatic Scale, so its recipe differs from Wind-Up Tin. Once you have that bait for the Harpooner assignment, use the moving-lure approach rather than waiting with it stationary after the cast.

Keep track of what your catch is needed for

Landing a fish is only part of the opening progression, because caught fish also feed into boat supplies and crafting. In the opening refuelling sequence, put Snappers into the Grinder beside the fuel pump and the large larva creature to obtain Fish Meat. That meat is then fed to the fuel larva before refuelling the boat. Fish Meat also appears in the Wind-Up Tin and Rainbow Fin recipes, while broader crafting uses organs and body parts harvested from dissected fish.

If a catch is needed for a contract, keep it when finishing the catch instead of overlooking that requirement. While carrying fish, sort the catch and watch the hold, because captured sea creatures can devour each other. Fishing also supports trade between settlements, and the official description says traders offer higher prices for more dangerous prey. Consider the catch's current purpose, whether that is a contract, processing for supplies, crafting materials or trade, as you handle the fish you have landed.