Blizzard added a fishing minigame to Diablo 4 with the Lord of Hatred expansion, and honestly? It works. Between clearing demonic hordes and hunting Uber Uniques, casting a line along the Skovos coast is a genuinely different pace. There are 117 fish to collect across Sanctuary, a grumpy NPC who blames you for scaring them away, and at least one fishing spot that fights back. Here is everything you need to know to get started.
How do you unlock fishing in Diablo 4?
Fishing is tied to the Lord of Hatred expansion. You need to own the DLC and progress through the early story until you complete the main quest The Queen and the Saint in the new region of Skovos. As soon as that quest wraps and What's Yet Unseen begins, a notification pops telling you the priority quest simply called Fishing is now available, according to the Fextralife wiki.
Head to Shi Yugong's Haven, a dock located east of the town of Temis. Fast travel to Temis and walk east along the coast. You will find Shi Yugong at the end of the dock, having caught absolutely nothing. Talk to him and choose the dialogue option about the fish not biting. He will blame you for being too loud, hand you a rod, and dare you to do better. Completing this short exchange awards 14,800 Gold and 814,073 XP and unlocks the fishing feature permanently, per the Fextralife wiki.
Shi Yugong's dock, east of Temis
If you are following the main quest out of Temis through the northeastern gate anyway, Shi Yugong is right along that path. You will pass him naturally without needing a separate detour.
How does the fishing mechanic work?
Fishing is an emote, not a skill. Open your emote wheel, find Cast Fishing Line, and use it while facing any valid body of water. The game confirms it works in standard water and even in lava, according to mein-mmo.de. If the emote is not already slotted, open the emote customization screen and add it manually.
Once the line is in the water, wait. When a fish bites, you will see the water near your line start to splash, and an icon appears above your character's head. Press your confirm button (R2 on PlayStation, any skill button on other platforms) quickly enough and the fish lands. Miss the window and you try again. There is no bait system, no stamina bar, no complicated timing meter. Patience and reflexes are the only requirements.
Emote wheel with fishing command
After catching your first fish, pick it up from the ground and head to the Consumables tab in your inventory. Click the fish to consume it and add it to your collection. Junk items can also appear on the hook (old diaries, a cowbell, various oddities) and those go to the standard Equipment tab. Sell the junk at any vendor.
Talking to Shi Yugong after your first successful catch triggers the follow-up side quest Favor for a Favor, which tasks you with catching three specific fish: a Koalodon, a Silverbelly, and a Darkling, per the Gamer Guides source.
What do you get from fishing?
The primary reward is collection progress. There are 117 distinct fish across Sanctuary, and catching each one for the first time adds it to your challenges log. Navigate to Collections, select the Challenges banner, and scroll to the Fishing category to track your progress. The challenges are sorted by region, so you can tell at a glance whether you have cleared everything catchable in Skovos before moving on.
Collecting all 117 fish completes the "Tenacious Angler" challenge and earns you a total of 118 achievements (one per fish, plus the completion reward), along with the title "Salty Angler", according to mein-mmo.de.
Fish you have already collected can be sold at any vendor. Duplicate catches have no other use currently, though mein-mmo.de notes that if fish acquire additional functions in a future update, the information may change.
Fishing has existed in Diablo Immortal since 2023, where catches could be exchanged for logbook rewards. The Diablo 4 implementation is currently achievement-focused, but the precedent for expanded fish utility is already there.
Fishing rewards and fish summary
Tips for collecting all 117 fish
Each body of water pulls from a random pool of fish specific to that location. You will not catch every fish in a region from a single spot, so work each fishing hole until the catches start repeating before moving on. The Challenges menu is your best navigation tool here: fishing entries are broken down by region, which tells you when you have exhausted a zone.
- Check the Challenges tab after every session to see which regions still have uncaught fish.
- Shi Yugong also offers additional side quests pointing you toward specific catches. Accept them to get guided hints on where to look.
- Fish at every type of water you encounter. The mechanic works in rivers, coastal water, and lava, so unusual environments may hold fish you would otherwise skip.
- When Favor for a Favor sends you after specific fish (Koalodon, Silverbelly, Darkling), check the Challenges tab first. The location hints stored there will narrow down where each one appears.
For more Diablo 4 content covering the Lord of Hatred expansion and beyond, browse more guides on GAMES.GG.