Piers draw all sorts of weirdness so have a handgun if you plan on being there through the night. Have a wingwall type basket/net withplenty of rope. A good headlamp and flashlight is essential. You can "catfish" with assorted bottom rigs and a surf combo.
1/2 or 3/4oz swimbaits/lipless cranks fished monotonously; lift and drop, with the current is effective for a wide variety of species at tide change. Don't retrieve, let the current do the work and jig at various depths: Don't cast to Cuba or Maine, the bait is around the pilings. Keep a FIRM grip on your rod as a mackeral or cobia can pull your shoulder out of socket. Have enough rod like "Have Enough Gun"; with at least 20lb braid. You can also duplicate the locals with their large Zebco's, shrimp pieces, cut mullet and blood worms for spot, croaker and such.
If you've decided to pier fish; remember to have a weapon, light and a good drop basket. If you go from the beach; surf tackle with braid which can fling a spoon or HuskyJerk towards Europe. Again, try to limit retrieves and let the current do most of the work on a tight line.
