Dredge Walkthrough Chapter 1: Grotesque Fish

Grotesque Fish is the First Chapter or Main Pursuit in Dredge. The Fisherman hauls in what appears to be an abnormal fish. Thinking that it could still be sold for something, he brings it over to the Fishmonger for inspection. Read ahead as we go through the events of Chapter 1: Grotesque Fish of Dredge and share some tips and tricks on how to complete the chapter.

See previous: Prologue – A Fresh Start

On this Guide:

After handing the aberration over to the Fishmonger, he dissects it and reveals that there’s a handkerchief inside the fish’s body. He hands you the handkerchief, which serves as one of the key items in the main story.

Later on, a mysterious man peers inside your vessel and asks you to meet him at Blackstone Isle, southeast of the Greater Marrows.

The Collector

Head and dock over at Blackstone Isle, and you’ll meet the mysterious man who introduces himself as The Collector. He is looking for relics, such as the handkerchief that you obtained, and he offers his dredger for your boat in exchange for your help in finding the other missing relics. There are five more to collect: a ring, a necklace, a watch, a music box, and a key.

How to dredge

Now that you have the dredger, you can now dredge for items that have sunken into the water. Look for debris in the water, then tap on the dredge button to start dredging.

You’ll then start the dredging minigame. In this minigame, there will be two rotating rings with gaps between them. You’ll be controlling an arrow jumping between these rings as you try to avoid hitting the gaps until you manage to haul the item all the way up to the ship.

Using the dredge, you can now also collect building materials that will be needed in ship upgrades as well as in some side pursuits.

Relic #1 – Ornate Key

At this point in the game, you are actually free to travel to other regions of the world and get their respective relics. However, due to the scaling difficulty per region and the unsuitability of your ship for their weather and danger conditions, it is advisable to prioritize finding the first relic, the Ornate Key, located near The Marrows.

According to The Collector, you should start looking for relics in shipwrecks. You can head over to the Lighthouse Keeper, and she will tell you about the shipwreck behind the Greater Marrow island.

Go to the shipwreck marked on the map (you can also follow the pillar of red light) and start dredging to obtain the Ornate Key. Bring this back to The Collector, and he will reward you with a special ability: Haste.

Haste Ability

The haste ability allows your boat to sail faster for a certain amount of time before your engine overheats. This is a good ability to pop in case you find yourself getting chased by the monstrosities of the sea. Keep an eye out on the engine meter and don’t let it go full; otherwise, your engine will stall and cause damage to a part of your ship. Additionally, using this ability also raises the panic meter.