Mooch is a skill that the Fishing job in FFXIV can learn at level 25. It lets you use a smaller fish you just caught to catch a bigger one.
What is a mooch, though?
It sounds like something a Rogue should be able to do. Or you could have a character trait that lets you borrow money from your friends. It’s neither of those, which is a shame:
Mooch is just a fishing skill, and it’s not even a very good one.
Mooch lets you keep a fish you caught on the line so you can use it to catch a bigger fish. In theory, this sounds very exciting, but in practice, it’s not as exciting as it sounds.
Mooch can only be used after you’ve caught a high-quality fish, and then it can only be used to catch a small group of fish.
You could probably fish for hours and never have a chance to use Mooch.
To get the most out of it, you kind of have to go for it by using bait that moochable fish like.
What’s The Point In Mooching?
There are some fish that Mooch is the only way to catch.
So you’ll need to catch a High-Quality fish that you can use as bait with Mooch, and then repeat the process of catching to get your prize.
As a process, Mooch doesn’t do anything important or special. You don’t have to do it because the fish you catch isn’t important for anything.
Sometimes they will be asked for in levequests, and sometimes they will be needed for a recipe.
Mooch just adds a little spice to the job of fishing. Some variety to keep you interested.
How Do You Know When To Mooch?
If you want to catch fish with Mooch, I think you should plan ahead a bit.
Here is a list of all the fish you can Mooch. Look at it and decide where you want to go.
When you catch a fish that can be mooched, the Mooch icon will light up on your toolbar, so keep an eye out for it.
You don’t have to cast bait fish right away if you want to catch Mooch.
This is helpful if you want to catch fish that only show up at certain times. It can make it easier to catch bait during that time window.
When you use certain skills while holding a bait fish, it will cancel out:
Fish Eyes, Chum, Surface Slap, Identical Cast, and Patience I and II.
What Does Mooch II Do?
At level 63, you’ll be able to use Mooch II.
It does the same thing as Mooch, but it doesn’t care about High Quality, so you can use it on any fish that can be mooched.
But there is a catch (sorry).
Mooch II has a cooldown of three minutes, but Mooch doesn’t have one.
Mooch II costs 100GP as well. So it can affect how much you spend on fishing in general.
Mooch II also doesn’t let you keep the fish you catch. You have 15 seconds after catching a Normal Quality fish to use the ability. If you don’t, you’ll lose the chance.
So it can be helpful in a few very specific cases.
But you should still try to Mooch normally if at all possible.
I’m New To Fishing, Is It Worth It?
What you want to get out of it really makes a difference.
Probably not, if you want to make money from your job. You can spend your time in the game in many more productive ways.
But it can be a great way to relax and get things done on its own.
Ocean Fishing is a fun and social activity, and it can take you to some of the most beautiful spots in Eorzea.
If you want to start fishing, I think this blog post is a good place to start.
