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How to Fish cooking: fish value and burnt weapons

By CorpusPublished Updated Written for v1.0.12

Dazed Games

Cook valuable catches carefully before selling them. Cooking can increase their value, but burning them reduces it. If a weapon has become cooked, submerge the held tool in water to reset its cooking state. The cleaning rule applies to tools, so it is not a way to reverse a burnt fish. These are separate rules in How to Fish 1.0.12's item logic.

Why two catches sell for different amounts

An item's sale value combines its base worth, individual size factor, cooking state, roulette multiplier and kill-score multiplier. A species' base worth alone therefore does not predict the amount shown on every body. The game also rounds during the calculation.

Kill-score bonuses multiply together. Adding the displayed bonus percentages will give the wrong result. The bonuses depend on how the killing hit was made, so a rare-looking or expensive species is not automatically the most valuable possible catch.

Use the creature records to compare base facts, then check the actual item's displayed value before selling or wagering it. For the 100,000-value achievement, the game checks one sold item's value. Several cheaper bodies sold together do not substitute for that single item.

What triggers each kill-score bonus?

These conditions describe creature kills in 1.0.12. The game calculates bonuses on the killing hit. Its combat and player-skill logic gives ranged kills a different set of checks from melee and explosions.

BonusMultiplierCondition
Melee1.05xFinish the creature with a melee hit.
Explosion1.25xExplosion scoring uses this bonus. It does not run the ordinary ranged-shot checklist.
Endangered1.25xKill a creature marked endangered.
Double kill and longer chainsStarts at 1.05xMake another kill within three seconds of the previous kill. Each additional prior kill in the chain adds 0.05 to this bonus, up to 1.5x.
3601.5xKill within one second of a recognized spin. The detector requires at least 320 degrees of accumulated camera yaw and resets after a turning pause longer than half a second.
No scope1.2xMake a ranged kill while not aiming, at least a quarter-second after leaving aim.
Quick scope1.1xMake a ranged kill while aiming, within half a second of entering aim.
Longshot1.3xThe target is at least 25 units from the player's camera.
Headshot1.25xHit beyond that creature's defined head threshold. This is a creature-specific hit-position check.
Dogfight1.5xThe player is airborne and the target has no level surface detected within 1.5 units below it.
Aerial1.25xThe player is airborne while the target has a nearby level surface below it.
Fly fishing1.25xThe player is grounded while the target has no level surface detected within 1.5 units below it.
One shot one kill1.25xThe target is at full health and the killing hit deals at least that much damage.
Point blank1.1xThe target is less than two units from the player.
Overkill1.25xThe hit exceeds the target's remaining health by more than 70 damage. Bosses and minibosses are excluded.
Last bullet1.25xThe held weapon's ammunition is zero when the kill is scored.
Finally1.1xThe attack-duration counter has passed its threshold since the previous kill. This is not a simple count of five bullets.
Killsteal1.3xYour first registered hit on that creature kills it while it has at most 30% of its maximum health remaining.
Noob1.01xA ranged kill reaches the fallback check without any of the preceding bonuses.
Impressive2xAt least five bonuses are already present before this extra bonus is added.

The bonus-preview menu lists Explosion as 1.5x, but the runtime explosion award is 1.25x. The table follows the awarded value. See dynamite damage and chain reactions for the separate combat calculation.

The Finally counter adds the configured interval each time a supported attack occurs. It must exceed five, resets on a kill, and also resets when the next attack follows more than 30 seconds without an attack. Holding a rapid-fire gun and firing five bullets is therefore not the same test as five slow attacks.

Some bonuses are alternatives. No scope and Quick scope cannot apply together, and the three airborne conditions select one result. Longshot and Point blank use different distance checks but are not a sensible pair to build a single normal shot around. There is no reason to add every row together and call it a maximum.

Melee creature kills check Endangered, the kill chain, Melee, Killsteal, 360, Finally and Impressive. The distance, headshot and ammunition rows belong to ranged scoring. Explosion scoring follows its own short path. That is why changing the finishing method can change a body's value even when the creature is the same.

For a manageable practice attempt, use a ranged weapon and combine conditions you can control, such as a recent spin, no scope, an airborne shot and the last bullet. Whether the target grants a headshot or other bonus still depends on the actual hit. The Impressive achievement requires the resulting multiplier product to reach at least five; its check is separate from the bonus also named Impressive.

Stop before the catch burns

The extracted cooking-value curve peaks at its cooked key point, where it gives 1.5 times the raw value. At the fully burnt key point it falls to about one tenth of raw value. The intermediate curve is not a straight timer-to-percentage conversion. Do not assume twice as much cooking means twice the money. See the source information for this build's basis.

Watch the catch and its displayed value while cooking. Remove it when cooked rather than leaving a valuable pile unattended. This is especially useful when the body already has a strong kill-score multiplier, because cooking acts on a value that other factors can multiply again.

Burning a creature does have an achievement use: eating a sufficiently burnt creature unlocks Yummy in my tummy. Choose an expendable catch for that attempt. The achievement guide also explains eating a miniboss and unlocking the grill.

How to eat a catch

Hold the creature and keep the primary action pressed until the eating animation finishes. On the default mouse controls this is left-click; use the equivalent action if you changed bindings or play with a controller. Releasing early stops eating, and switching away from the held creature interrupts the attempt.

You do not need to cook it first. Completing the action consumes the creature and restores health and fullness according to that creature's values and cooking state. Cooking changes those restoration amounts as well as sale value. Main bosses cannot be picked up after death, which is one reason the eating achievement specifically asks for a miniboss.

The input, consumption and restoration rules follow the eating logic. Keep a requested quest catch aside if you still need to hand it to an NPC; eating consumes the item.

Is money shared in multiplayer?

Yes. The world has one shared money balance. Selling a catch adds its value to that balance, and purchases spend from it. You do not need to divide the sale proceeds or transfer money to a teammate before they shop.

Agree on expensive purchases with the group. The seller's identity can affect feedback, but it does not create a personal wallet. This is the shared balance recorded in the world's money and save logic.

How to clean a cooked gun or tool

Hold the affected tool and lower it into the water far enough to submerge it. The reset checks the tool's center of mass against the water level, so touching only the tip to the surface may not be enough.

There is no need to throw a valuable weapon into deep water for this reset. Keeping it held avoids turning a cleaning attempt into a lost-item problem. Once the underwater check runs, it resets the tool's cooking state.

This rule covers tools, including weapons. It does not reset a creature's cooking state. Do not put a burnt fish in the sea expecting its original sale value to return. If the weapon is missing rather than discolored, use the inventory and weapon guide.

Money and cooking achievements

AchievementRequirementPractical choice
Rich! MillionaireSell one item whose displayed total value is at least 100,000.Check that one item before selling; the shared balance and a batch total are different checks.
ImpressiveReach at least a 5x product of kill-score bonuses.Combine compatible ranged bonuses from the table above.
GrillmasterUnlock the grill through its quest.Follow the Quest: Grillmaster request to unlock it.
Yummy in my tummyFinish eating a creature whose cooking state has reached the burnt threshold.Use an expendable catch instead of burning a valuable body.

The Impressive achievement and the bonus called Impressive are different conditions. The bonus requires at least five earlier bonuses, while the achievement checks their resulting product. Neither guarantees that the creature's sale value reaches 100,000.

Ordinary money routes and what to keep

StageA practical source of moneyKeep aside
Opening purchasesPick up nearby Clams or use the rod's reusable bait. Clam spawn areas are recorded on Island 1.Beer for the Keeper and the resulting boss bait.
Repeat fishingHam on the Crab-Fishing Rod or French Fry on the Fishing Rod avoids a per-catch bait purchase.Any accepted creature needed for the current request.
Better-value catchesImprove the killing hit, cook the body carefully and sell it.Tuna for the Albatross trigger and named boss trophies.
Later quest preparationSell surplus catches after separating the required hand-ins.Five eligible dead, previously held creatures for the Scientist.

Clams have a low base value, so their presence is not a promise of fast income. Individual values, travel, catching and cooking time determine your actual results. The catch-rate tables show which default bait belongs to each rod and what it can select.

Hold items at least once before selling them. A body lying in the sale area without having been picked up does not satisfy the sale eligibility check in this build. Confirm the displayed value after cooking, and remove quest items from the group before making the sale.

Buy the next required bait or a useful weapon before optional upgrades. The boat guide and weapon tables provide actual costs. There is no verified earnings-per-minute ranking here, and a roulette jackpot is not a repeatable budget for a progression route.

Earning more without betting the whole catch

Improve the kill, cook the body and sell it. That sequence uses the ordinary value systems without risking the body on a roulette loss. For collection goals, use the appropriate lure rather than choosing bait solely by the most expensive possible catch.

Roulette wins can multiply item worth further, but a loss destroys the wagered items. Keep quest hand-ins, collection trophies you want to retain and necessary equipment outside the betting area. A high possible payout does not make it a guaranteed money-making route.

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