Arsenal & Lures — Every Weapon and Lure in How to Fish
Every weapon and lure in How to Fish with costs, roles and field notes — plus the upgrade order that actually scales from Island 1 to Island 5.
FAQ
What should I buy first in How to Fish?
What is in the How to Fish gun cabinet?
Six tools of indoor-outdoor marine conflict. Note what’s missing from this table: a reason to buy them before your lures and grill. Guns convert catches into chips; they do not create catches.
| Weapon | Cost | Role | Field note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starter Pistol | Free | Emergency sidearm | Yours at the Island 1 dock. Loud, weak, loyal. |
| Shotgun | $180 | Swarm answer | Wide cone, short temper. The Island 2 purchase. |
| SMG | $340 | Sustained fire | Leech drones and flying-fish schools. Rewards trigger discipline. |
| Assault Rifle | $720 | Precision | Mid-air calls at range and Island 3+ duels. |
| Dynamite ×3 | $150 | Area denial | Fishing, if you hate fishing. Never stacks with trick shots. |
| Harpoon Gun | $950 | Boss utility | Pins big fish for the reel. The Reef Tyrant hates it here. |
What does every lure do?
Lures are the real economy of How to Fish. Each one unlocks a family of species — which means each one is an income unlock before it is a fishing preference. The per-species pairings are in the fishipedia.
| Lure | Cost | Effect | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic Hook | Free | No modifiers | Sardine, herring, whatever is desperate |
| Bright Spinner | $45 | Bite rate up on schoolers | Mackerel, bluegill, first-day income |
| Worm Ball | $60 | Bounces with the current | Mudskippers and tide-pool tricksters |
| Meat Chunk | $80 | Predator aggro | Piranha, catfish, post-swarm windows |
| Feather Rig | $120 | Spooks schools upward | Flying fish — the trick-shot economy |
| Steel Leader | $140 | Stops line cuts | Sharks, turtles, anything with teeth |
| Glow Lure | $160 | Lights up night feeders | Anglerfish, lantern squid, night cycles |
| Deep Troll Rig | $260 | Long-drop line | Swordfish, manta rays, the Abyss floor |
| Golden Hook | $600 | Drip-tier attraction | Drippy urchins and high-roller payouts |
| Mythic Lure | $2,000 | Summons endgame spawns | Comet tuna, leviathan fry, ghost marlin |
What is the upgrade order that actually scales?
The shop sells everything from day one, which is exactly how it gets you. The community-tested order:
- Bright spinner ($45) — cheapest bite-rate multiplier in the game.
- Second grill slot — food security is DPS security. The hunger math is in the cooking guide.
- Shotgun ($180) — the Swarm’s leech waves are unmanageable without it.
- Feather rig ($120) — unlocks flying fish, where trick-shot money lives.
- SMG ($340) — sustained fire for drones; the shotgun’s reload gets someone killed.
- Steel leader ($140) — before Island 4, unless you enjoy re-tying lines mid-shark.
- Assault rifle ($720) + deep troll rig ($260) — the Island 3/4 dueling combo.
- Golden hook ($600) — the drippy urchin trade funds everything after this.
- Harpoon gun ($950) — boss utility; one charge per voyage, so make it count.
- Boat engine — a luxury until the map gets long, which is exactly Island 4.
- Mythic lure ($2,000) — the endgame key. Everything else is cosmetics.
Lines, traps and the boring drawer
The shop’s third shelf sells line upgrades, traps and bait bulk packs. Most of it is skippable — except three items the community treats as mandatory:
- Insulated line (Island 2) — electric eels otherwise cost more in reel durability than they pay.
- Tide pool trap (Island 1) — crabs sell steadily while you do literally anything else.
- Reinforced trap (Island 5) — the Abyssal King Crab needs two crew and this trap, or it needs a new boat.
Everything else in the drawer is bait bulk, which is fine value and zero fun to manage. Buy the 20-pack, forget about it, and spend your attention on the fish that actually fight back. When those fights are bosses rather than fish, the boss guides cover which gun each one punishes you for skipping.
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Fishipedia — All 30 Species, Best Lures and Base Values
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