Windrose Advanced Fish Guide: Secret Weapon & Collection

If you already know how to craft a fishing rod and reel in the basics, it's time to talk about the endgame of Windrose fishing. This isn't just about farming fillets anymore. By mindlessly casting your line, you can randomly hook a secret weapon called the "Smasher"—which the community falsely calls a sword, but is actually a 1-Handed Mace with massive knockback. Furthermore, you need to exploit the current "shallow water bug" to quickly complete your 10-fish collection before the devs patch it. Doing so unlocks the Fisherman's Ring, though mathematically, the sheer act of grinding for this ring will leave you with so many Fish Fillets that the ring's buff becomes instantly obsolete.

The Secret Windrose Fish Weapon: Smasher

Let's clear up the Reddit rumors immediately. Many players search for a windrose fish sword because of leaked screenshots. The item exists, but its official name is the Smasher, and mechanically, it is a One-handed Rare Mace.

You cannot craft this. It is a pure RNG drop obtained exclusively by fishing. It does not matter if you fish in Shallow or Deep waters; every successful catch has a fractional chance to pull up the Smasher instead of a fish.

Is it actually good?

No. In terms of raw stats, it sits firmly in the D-Tier of weapon tier lists.

If you are looking for a weapon to push Cursed Swamp crypts, then throw this in your stash immediately. It cannot be ascended to Epic tier. However, its "Fun Level" is S-Tier because it possesses a hidden modifier that applies a massive knockback effect on hit, making it hilarious for knocking pirates off their ships during boarding.

Windrose All Fish: The Collection Exploit

To fully complete your windrose fish collection, you need to catch 10 distinct species. By design, the game splits these into two loot tables: Shallows and Deep Waters.

Fish Species	Intended Water Type	Rarity
Blue Tang	Shallows	Uncommon
Moon Angelfish	Shallows	Uncommon
Queen Angelfish	Shallows	Uncommon
Pink Wrasse	Shallows	Uncommon
Sapphire Wrasse	Shallows	Uncommon
Reef Snapper	Shallows	Rare
Emerald Bluefish	Deep Waters	Rare
Red Snapper	Deep Waters	Rare
Giant Mackerel	Deep Waters	Epic
Large Barracuda	Deep Waters	Epic

The Early Access Bug: Currently, there is a recognized bug in the build. If you stand on the starting beach (Shallows), then you can still randomly pull up Deep Water Epics like the Giant Mackerel. Exploit this oversight to finish your collection quickly before it gets patched, saving you from having to sail your ship into the open ocean just to fish.

The Windrose Fishing Ring Paradox

Once you catch all 10 fish at least once, the Collection UI will award you the Fisherman's Ring. Equipping this ring grants a 15% base chance to catch an extra fish per cast. You can even upgrade it at the Jeweler's Bench to the Major Fisherman's Ring for a 30% chance.

The Hardcore Reality: This ring is a completionist trap. The RNG required to catch all 10 distinct fish means you will pull up hundreds of duplicates along the way. By the time the game finally hands you this ring, you will have processed so many Fish Fillets that you won't need to fish again for the rest of your playthrough. Only wear this if you are feeding a 4-player dedicated server.

Advanced Processing: Beyond the Skewer

In our basic windrose fishing guide, we covered the Seafood Platter. But once you start processing Rare and Epic fish, you'll be swimming in Fillets. Here is how you should categorize your cooking based on the stats you need:

1. Need Agility? Craft Chowder (Rare): 3x Fish Fillet, 3x Sweet Potato, 2x Salt = +10 Agility.
2. Need raw Tankiness? Craft Fish and Tostones (Rare): 3x Fish Fillet, 3x Banana, 2x Nuts = +10 Vitality.
3. Boss Fight Prep: Seafood Platter (Epic): 7x Fish Fillet, 4x Lime, 3x Crab Meat, 4x Salt = +20 Vitality.

Pro Tip: Running out of Salt for Chowder? Don't grind crates. Sail to the Brethren of the Coast Provisioner; you can just buy Salt in bulk for a mere 2 Piastre per piece.

FAQ: Advanced Fish & Weapons

Q: Can the Smasher weapon roll with different stats or Epic effects?

A: No. The Smasher is a fixed-stat Rare drop. Because it explicitly "cannot be ascended" at the crafting bench, what you pull out of the water is exactly what you get permanently. It is a novelty item, not a late-game carry.

Q: I've caught 9/10 fish but the Large Barracuda won't drop in the shallows anymore. Was it patched?

A: While the bug allows deep fish to spawn in shallows, the drop rate for Epics in the wrong biome is abysmally low. If you are stuck on the last Epic fish, stop relying on the bug. Take your ship into the Deep Ocean and cast there to force the correct loot table.

Q: Do larger fish take longer to reel in?

A: No. Windrose does not use a tension or stamina mini-game for reeling. Whether you hook an Uncommon Blue Tang or the Secret Smasher weapon, the mechanic is identical: wait for the flat splash, click once, and instantly loot it.