Look above and be jealous, for one fortunate Redditor has earned themselves the new shark mount added to Final Fantasy XIV in patch 5.2. u/FerretFomMars shared what they had to do to earn the mount, and turns out it will take some fine angling on everyone’s part.
The shark mount is earned after earning more than 10,000 points on an Ocean Fishing trip.
I’m going to be blunt real quick: crossing that threshold will require abilities not available to novice fishers, so those below level 60 will largely struggle to hit 10,000 points. Though, they shouldn’t be discouraged: the experience alone will get them to that point sooner than mindless grinding alone would have, and everyone on the boat contributes towards the bonuses and Spectral Currents needed to push the final score into the five-digit range.
I say this because Double Hook will prove vital during “rainbows” (the name the community has given Spectral Currents). If used during a medium or heavy tug you can net two to four rare fish for a massive amount of points, as u/FerretFromMars attests (though, saving it for those !!! tugs is best). That means you need to save some GP for rainbows, therefore Patience 1 is best used during regular fishing to not only boost your score with high-quality fish, but to increase your odds of triggering a rainbow. It is also best to save the Plump Worms (used to catch larger fish) for rainbows as well (to get those !!! tugs).
Triggering Spectral Currents is the hard part, but any one person on the boat can do it. Essentially, each area in a route has special objectives that need to be completed to trigger the rainbow. For example, Outer Galadion Bay requires a player to first catch three Gladion Chovy without a break in fishing (high-quality not required), then to use the Fisher’s Intuition buff they receive to catch a Spectral Megalodon.
Essentially, the rare Spectral fish are what you need to net to trigger a Spectral Current, and the community is still piecing together what each area in Ocean Fishing requires to lure these elusive buggers in. The reason rainbows are important for the mount is due to the obnoxious amount of points that are earned whenever they are up. You catch rare fish left, right, forward, and center when a rainbow is active (thus using Double Hook during them), which boosts your score astronomically. u/FerretFromMars recommends having a rainbow in each of the three stops, but others are claiming you can reach 10,000 points with two.
Needless to say, you will want to bring a large store of Cordials and Hi-Cordials (Hi-Cordials preferred) to maximize Patience and Double Hook opportunities. With each stop lasting seven minutes you can easily pop one and have the timer refresh at the next location.
The key is to reach 5,500 points without bonuses, though more is certainly better. If you and your team manage to net enough bonuses you should see your score catapult over 10,000, and the shark mount will be yours. It is tied to an achievement, by the way, so you need to talk to the achievement vendor in Gridania to claim your prize. Another day, another Final Fantasy XIV mount to covet and adore.
