Training
How do I reach 525 Fishing Skill? How do I train Illustrious Rank?
Only level 5 is required to train all ranks of fishing. All fishing trainers teach all ranks available to you, based on the expansion you have (the only known exception is KTC Train-a-Tron Deluxe on The Lost Isles). Cataclysm adds a few new trainers, especially in lower-level zones. All existing capital city trainers remain available.
There are no changes to the way fishing skill is gained - just catch something! This means you can level-up fishing from any water, even if you catch junk. Between skill 450 and 525 leveling takes 9-10 catches per skill-point. For the full skill-up table, see Cataclysm Fishing.
I want to be the Realm First! Illustrious Angler: Any tips?
- Ensure you have the expansion ready at the moment Cataclysm realms become live: Midnight PST at the start of 7 December in North America, midnight CET in Europe. This is probably easiest to achieve by pre-loading an online "digital" purchase version of Cataclysm.
- Log out near a fishing trainer, so that you can train Illustrious rank as soon as it becomes available.
- Fish open water non-stop until 525...
Obviously any time you spend moving away from the trainer, taking breaks, or doing anything other than catch fish quickly, increases the chance of someone else beating you to the achievement. However, consider that a quick flight to a Cataclysm zone (such as Twilight Highlands or Mount Hyjal) will lose a few minutes, but at least will allow you to catch a lot of useful (especially for cooking) fish.
Only one angler per realm can gain this "realm first", so there will be still be a lot of luck involved, depending on who else on your realm is attempting it. Completed realm firsts are announced realm-wide. Further discussion.
What if I want to level Cooking with Fishing 450-525?
Please read Fishing and Cooking 1-525 Part 2.
How do I learn the Recipe for Seafood Magnifique Feast?
Seafood Magnifique Feast is a raid-buffing feast which binds to the cook when created. The feast buffs everyone for 90 Stamina and 90 "useful stat". For most classes/builds this useful stat is as good as any other buff from cooked food.
The recipe for Seafood Magnifique Feast is a guild reward. You guild must have completed the guild achievement That's A Lot of Bait, which requires 10,000 pool catches (from across your entire guild, not per member). There is likely also a guild reputation requirement (which might only be a problem if you have very recently joined the guild). The recipe can then be purchased for 150g from guild vendors in capital cities (ask a guard for directions). The recipe requires 525 cooking skill to learn.
Locations
What skill do I need to fish in...?
The no-junk skill for new Cataclysm zones is listed below. Remember that you can fish open water with lower skill, but some catches will be junk. And you will never catch junk from pools, regardless of your skill.
| No-Junk Skill | Zones and Areas |
|---|---|
| 1 | Mount Hyjal (Throne of Flame) and Twilight Highlands (Cannon's Inferno) |
| 25 | Gilneas (Worgen) and The Lost Isles |
| 550 | Deepholm |
| 575 | Mount Hyjal (General) and Vashj'ir |
| 650 | Twilight Highlands (General) and Uldum |
| 675 | Tol Barad |
How do I get to...?
- Deepholm only via a quest/portal or Potion of Deepholm at level 82+. You cannot fly to Deepholm directly.
- Gilneas is only accessible to young Worgen. The Ruins of Gilneas can be reached by any method from Hillsbrad Foothills or Silverpine Forest.
- The Lost Isles/Kezan are only accessible to young Goblins.
- Mount Hyjal via a quest at level 78+, or by flying mount at level 60+.
- Tol Barad only via a portal at level 85. You cannot fly to Tol Barad directly.
- Twilight Highlands via a quest at level 84+, flying mount at level 60+, or by swimming along the coast from Arathi Highlands or Badlands at almost any level (direct land access from Wetlands may also be possible, but suicidal at low level).
- Uldum via a quest at level 84+, by flying mount at level 60+, or by swimming along the coast from Tanaris at almost any level (direct land access from Tanaris may also be possible, but dangerous at low level).
- Vashj'ir via a quest/portal at level 78+, or by epic flying mount at level 60+: Fly west from Ironforge, across the fatigue zone - if you fly in the correct direction you should reach coastal waters of Vashj'ir before dying.
Portals are available from hubs in Stormwind City (north-east side, for Alliance) or Orgrimmar (upper level, for Horde), once you meet the appropriate quest/level requirement. Introductory zone quests typically start from Hero's Call Boards, especially found in capital cities. Different cities may offer access to different zones, so you may need to check more than one Hero's Call Board to find the appropriate quest. Portals may not be available until a sequence of introductory quests have been completed.
The Alliance boats from Stormwind and Azuremyst Isle now travel direct to Teldrassil, not Darkshore. Orgrimmar's zeppelins now depart from inside the city.
What happened to...?
- Azshara becomes a level 10-20 Horde zone. Patch of Elemental Water have disappeared. Open water catches have been partly downgraded to match the new zone level.
- Zul'Gurub becomes a subzone of Northern Stranglethorn. Nat's Measuring Tape/Gahz'ranka quests are no longer available. Muddy Churning Water have disappeared. Open water catches are the same as Northern Stranglethorn.
Other changes to Old Azeroth fishing are more minor: Previous catches can still be caught, but there are many subtle changes to which fish are caught where, and what skill is required. Read Cataclysm Old Azeroth Changes for details.
Catches
What happened to the new fishing mechanic?
None of the changes mentioned during 2009 BlizzCon have occurred. The basic process of catching fish remains the same as it always has been. Those Gnomish engineers have clearly been too busy retaking our city...
What's worth catching from Cataclysm zones?
- Fish to cook buff food - almost every Cataclysm fish can be cooked into buff food, except Sharptooth and Murglesnout. Eventually the most valuable raw fish were Fathom Eel, Highland Guppy, and Lavascale Catfish, because these are required to cook Seafood Magnifique Feast, the fish-based raiding feast.
- Volatiles for use in professions: Volatile Water will almost always be gained while fishing Cataclysm-level waters for something else. Volatile Fire can be caught from lava and Pool of Fire - see Fishing Pool of Fire (Volatile Fire) for details.
- Albino Cavefish may be useful for Alchemists - both for leveling and Mysterious Potion.
Most (but not all) valuable fish can be caught from both open water and pools, with higher catch rates pools than open water. For further details, see Cataclysm Catches.
Where are the really rare Cataclysm catches?
Good question! The only new exclusive item ever caught was the Sea Pony, and that was from Darkmoon Island, which was not technically part of the Cataclysm. The Shatterscale Mightfish was officially found in Pool of Fire, but was never actually caught there.
Are there any new/disappeared fish in Old Azeroth?
Except for a few removed quests and Patch of Elemental Water, there are no new or disappeared fish in Old Azeroth (pre-expansion 1-60 zones) - everything can still be caught, just sometimes in different zones. For details, see Cataclysm Old Azeroth Changes.
What's changed in Outland and Northrend?
Nothing is known to have changed in Outland or Northrend related to fishing. These continents have not been affected by the Cataclysm.
Gear
What can the Lure Master Tackle Box contain?
The Lure Master Tackle Box is the first (and currently only) fishing bag. It is made by engineers (using a 475-skill recipe), but can be used by anyone. The bag has 36 slots, which can contain:
- Raw, uncooked fish (including clam meats and quest fish).
- Offhand and one-hand fish weapons.
- Un-learnt fished minipets and mounts.
- Fishing Poles and Fishing Gear, except gloves enchanted with fishing skill.
- Lures.
- Fishing daily quest reward items - rings, gems, even junk novelty items.
The bag cannot contain cooked fish dishes or Volatile Water (but can contain Water Eternals and Primals).
Any new poles?
Yes and no:
- Alliance can now gain the +20 fishing skill Nat Pagle's Extreme Angler FC-5000 from a new quest in The Hinterlands: Snapjaws, Lad! from Dron Blastbrew at Stormfeather Outpost. Requires level 29, with no pre-requisites. Horde can still gain the pole via the original Snapjaws, Mon! quest.
- Gubber Blump's Blump Family Fishing Pole is no longer available (but anglers that gained it before Cataclysm should keep it). An identical (+3) Staats' Fishing Pole is available instead. This pole is a reward for the Alliance-only quest A Taste for Grouper form Johnathan Staats in Lor'danel, Darkshore. Requires level 8, available after completing The Last Wave of Survivors, the first quest in the zone.
- The Arcanite Fishing Pole (gained by winning the Stranglethorn Extravaganza Contest) has a new design.
New lures?
- Feathered Lure - +100 for 10 minutes. Created by cooks from Delicate Wing, using a 450-skill recipe.
- Heat-Treated Spinning Lure - +150 for 15 minutes. Created by engineers using a 510-skill recipe.
Quests and Events
What is required for the Azeroth daily fishing quests?
Level 10 (or above) and at least 1 point of skill (fishing for the fishing dailies, cooking for the cooking dailies). 1 out of 5 possible quests will be available each day from each city (Darnassus/Ironforge/Stormwind or Orgrimmar/Thunder Bluff/Undercity). Only one Azeroth daily fishing quest can be completed each day. For more details about the fishing dailies, read Azeroth Daily Fishing Quests (Alliance) or Azeroth Daily Fishing Quests (Horde).
Has the Stranglethorn Extravaganza changed?
The Stranglethorn Extravaganza Contest has not changed. School of Tastyfish now cover both The Cape of Stranglethorn and Northern Stranglethorn.
Have any fishing quests been removed?
Tentatively, yes:
- Craftsman's Writs (Argent Dawn).
- Gaffer Jacks and Electropellers - Wizbang Cranktoggle escaped to Lor'danel, but he no longer appears to offer fishing quests.
- The Family and the Fishing Pole - replaced by A Taste for Grouper (described under Any new Poles? above).
- Nat's Measuring Tape and Gahz'ranka - Nat Pagle may still talk about it, and even offer to sell Mudskunk Lure, but Pagle's Point in Zul'Gurub does not exist anymore.
- Selling Fish - Dockmaster Baren can still be found in Lakeshire, but he no longer appears to offer quests.
Achievements
Can I become Salty without The Deadliest Catch?
Yes. The Deadliest Catch (fishing up Gahz'ranka) becomes a Feat of Strength, and is no longer part of Accomplished Angler.
When do pool catches start being counted towards guild fishing achievements?
Generally progress towards numerical achievements like That's A Lot of Bait (10,000 pool catches) only starts being counted once the achievement is patched and available to be completed. Pool catches before the Cataclysm will not be counted towards the guild total.
What makes The Limnologist and The Oceanographer Difficult?
Both achievements require a large number of different named fish to be caught - see The Limnologist and The Oceanographer for details. Most fish are straightforward to catch. However, The Oceanographer requires both seasonal fish to be caught: Raw Summer Bass and Winter Squid. Each fish is only catchable for 6 months of the year, so completing this achievement could take longer than expected...
Learn More
- Cataclysm forum discussion - Topics tagged "Cataclysm".
- Also in Cataclysm: Cataclysm Fishing, Cataclysm Catches, and Cataclysm Old Azeroth Changes.
