Fishing

Fishing is the process of catching fish. Fishing can be done for fun, food, or profit (though not much).

Angling

Angling is fishing with a fishing rod, line, and hook.

To get started, you should first purchase a fishing rod. These are normally sold in general stores of the various towns. The hamlet of Westbrook has a good variety of rods, though there doesn't seem to be any difference other than how they look.

You should also buy some spare fishing line in case yours snaps. In the case that your line snaps, hold your rod in one hand and some fishing line in the other and type ATTACH.

Next you just need to go to a fishing site (list below) and type FISH with a rod on one hand and the other hand empty. This will cause you to cast your line. Depending on the area and the fish population you just wait until you feel a tug at your line.

Once you feel a tug at your line, try to PULL your catch in. You can also use PULL even if you don't have a catch in order to pull in your line so you can do something else or leave. Keep PULLing until you either succeed in getting your fish, or the fish gets away. That's it!

Spearfishing

Spearfishing is trying to catch fish using a spear instead of a rod, line, and hook. The GMs have stated spearfishing is significantly harder than angling (at least starting off, it's currently unknown if it evens out later somehow). It also uses a formula involving part of your Fishing skill and part of your Polearms skill, so it's only recommended for people who use polearms. If you don't, angling is the better choice for you.

Spearfishing is simple. While holding the right type of polearm (spears and tridents are known to work) in one hand and with your other hand empty, just go to a fishing site (list below) where spearfishing is available and type SPEARFISH. This will cause you to crouch and watch the water for fish with your spear at the ready.

You will be notified when a fish swims close: when this happens type SPEARFISH again to try and spear it. You will either catch the fish or miss it - if you miss it, you will continue spearfishing. If you catch it, you will stop spearfishing and will have to type SPEARFISH again to start over.

To stop watching for fish prematurely, just type STOP.

Cooking Fish

You can put fish directly into a frying pan or skillet, or you can CUT them into multiple fillets first. Cutting them first will yield more food overall (at least in Orris' experience this seems to be the case).

Once you have the fish and/or fillets in your skillet, simply go somewhere with a cooking fire and type COOK. Cooking fires are usually found in inns, but things like braziers can also be used, or you can make your own campfire in the wilderness! Typing CAMPFIRE will give general instructions on how to do that.

Note: If you ruin your cooking and end up with a charred mass, you an BURY the mass to get rid of it rather than just DROPping it on the ground and leaving litter or carrying it over to a trash barrel.

Recommended Fishing Sites

• Mistral Lake Town Square: Angling Only
• Mistral Lake Dock: Angling Only
• Tarueka River (not far north of Shadgard): Angling and Spearfishing

There are other places to fish too but you'll have to explore and find them on your own! Be careful where you fish - some areas are considered territory of people who do not take kindly to trespassers! When in doubt, ask questions over the ESP pendant.

Other Tips and Info

• Fishing isn't very profitable compared to other methods of making money. It seems to be more for fun and recreation.
• In many fishing areas, if you DROP a fish acquired by angling, it will either fall right back into the water, or flop about on the ground for a while and eventually flop into the water and swim away. Bring a trunk or barrel or something to put your catches in.
• If you notice you aren't getting very many bites, it's a good idea to move to a different fishing spot. Fish will run out and take time to repopulate. Please fish responsibly!
• Because it is right on top of a lake, Mistral Lake market doesn't pay very much for fish.
• Fish with friends! It's a great activity to do while you just sit and shoot the breeze with one another.
• Fish can be used as weapons! You can ATTACK while holding one, or HURL one at someone!

Notes

This system is still very limited. Future plans and ideas will include new fish types, variant weights, rarity and difficulty.

Trainers

• Trade Master Manny (Mistral Lake)
• Fisherman Alerr (Mistral Lake)

Dedicated PC fishermen

If your character is dedicated to fishing and willing to go on fishing trips or help teach others (both advice and actually teaching the skill for skill bonuses), add your name here!

• Orris