Fishing in Terraria often rewards patience, but the Sonar Potion turns waiting into knowing. This potion gives you clarity at the waterโs edge, letting you see exactly what bites your hook before you decide to reel it in. If your goal involves quest fishing, crate hunting, or careful bait use, brewing this potion becomes a smart move rather than a luxury.
This guide walks you through how to brew a Sonar Potion in Terraria and what it does.
What the Sonar Potion Does in Terraria
The Sonar Potion is a consumable buff potion that grants the Sonar buff for eight minutes. Once active, the potion reveals the name of the fishing catch above your bobber the moment something bites.
This effect allows you to see whether the hooked catch matches your goal before you reel it in. You stay in control of every cast rather than relying on chance alone.
The buff ends after eight minutes, though you can cancel it manually at any time through the active buff menu, depending on your game device.
Ingredients Required to Brew a Sonar Potion
Brewing a Sonar Potion requires three specific items. Each ingredient plays a fixed role in the recipe.
You need:
- Bottled Water
- Waterleaf
- Coral
Once gathered, these ingredients combine into one Sonar Potion.
Crafting the Sonar Potion Step by Step

To craft the potion, place yourself near the correct crafting station and combine the ingredients.
You can brew a Sonar Potion at:
- A Placed Bottle
- An Alchemy Table
Both stations work, though the Alchemy Table offers a chance to save ingredients during crafting.
Recipe
- 1 Bottled Water
- 1 Waterleaf
- 1 Coral
Crafting produces one Sonar Potion per recipe.
How the Sonar Buff Displays Fishing Results
When the Sonar buff activates, it displays the hooked catch name above the bobber in text. The text appears with visual color overlays that reflect the nature of what bites.

- Regular items show their rarity color with a dark blue overlay
- Certain hostile entities display a red-toned overlay
The potion does not show any text when you hook Duke Fishron. If you disable pickup text in the game settings, the Sonar Potion will not display any text at all.
Uses of Sonar Potion
The Sonar Potion allows intentional fishing. You can ignore unwanted catches and save bait by leaving the line in the water until the right catch appears.
This advantage proves especially useful when:
- Completing Angler fishing quests
- Fishing for crates
- Using Chum Buckets, which expire after a fixed number of reel-ins
The potion also helps during Blood Moons, where fishing may hook enemies instead of fish.
However, if you carry abundant bait or possess high fishing power, the potion may slow overall progress. Even then, it remains useful when selective catches matter more than speed.
Additional Ways to Obtain the Sonar Potion
Crafting is not the only way to get this potion. The Angler may also reward Sonar Potions for completing fishing quests.
This option makes the potion accessible even if crafting materials run low.






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