How to Fish bait guide: lures and catch selection

Choose your bait by the creature you want to catch. The game selects catches from the equipped bait's weighted list, without filtering that list by island. The place where a lure is sold therefore does not establish where its fish can be selected. Corpus's bait directory keeps acquisition locations and catch lists separate.

Start with the fish, then find its bait

1. Open the target in the creature directory.
2. Follow its bait associations. A creature can belong to more than one lure's catch list.
3. Open a suitable bait to check its shops or quest reward and its selection share for your target.
4. Use those acquisition links to find supplies you can currently obtain.

A lure can support your target before you have access to its seller. Check both the catch list and the acquisition location when planning your next trip.

A later lure is not always better for your target

The Seahorse is an example. Both Standard Lure and Professional Lure can select it, but Standard Lure gives it the larger share of its selection pool in this build.

For a Seahorse hunt, that makes Standard Lure a sensible first choice if it is available to you. You may still need repeated attempts. Follow the bait pages for the full catch lists and selection shares.

What a catch percentage means

Corpus's bait percentages are each creature's share of the bait's selection weights. They describe the selection step, rather than the chance of completing a successful catch every time you cast. Reeling requirements and bait loss are separate fields on the bait pages.

That distinction matters when comparing attempts. A supported catch may still take repeated selections, and a percentage does not tell you how long your fishing session will last. It also does not include a claim about successfully fighting or landing the selected creature.

Why boss bait may stop working

The game's hook logic checks whether a boss is already active. For dedicated boss baits such as Empty Beer Can and Carrot, it can block the selection step entirely until that encounter is over. Resolve the active boss before trying to summon another.

There is a separate rule for mixed catch pools: if the weighted selection reaches a boss while another is active, it returns the default catch instead. Finish the active encounter before trying again.

Do not apply the catch table to every encounter trigger. For example, the Albatross also has an encounter-specific trigger; its creature page and Quest: Island 4 request explain the relevant connections. A bait table alone is not a complete boss walkthrough.

Does the island matter at all?

Yes: islands matter for reaching shops, people, quest rewards and authored encounter locations. A lure's catch list is not restricted to the island where that lure is sold. Authored encounters can still require a particular place or action.

Use the map to find supplies and quest givers, and the creature's bait associations to choose what goes on the rod. If the problem is the endangered-creature hand-in, the Carrot quest guide explains the accepted catches and reward step.

For rare variants and collection gaps, use the Drip fish guide. For the next passage quest, use the island progression guide.