5.2: Pagle Reputation and Catch Changes
In Patch 5.2, each rare fish that grants Nat Pagle's Friendship awards 600 reputation with him (before bonuses), up from 500. In addition, Mumper says:
"Rare [Pagle] fish catches are essentially twice as good."
Update: On average, 4.4% of catches from both open water and pools in Pandaria will have a Pagle fish attached. Slightly better than twice, especially as this feels much less variable than the 1 or 2% in patch 5.1. Detailed catch analysis below:
There are 6 different groups of waters Pagle fish may be caught from: Each of the 3 fish may be caught from pools or open water. One specific type of water was tested to represent each of these 6 different groups. At least a thousand regular (non-Pagle) fish were caught during each test. The results are shown in the table below.
Note that Pagle fish are now caught alongside a regular catch. So in the first case, 1,018 regular fish were caught from Swarm of Panicked Paddlefish, and 45 of those were caught with a bonus Flying Tiger Gourami. Some Pool migartion pools were tested, but other observations suggest their contents are precisely the same as normal pool types, such as Krasarang Paddlefish School. Since Pagle fish are unique, every Pagle fish caught was immediately thrown back in, allowing further Pagle fish to appear. Unique fish would not appear if the same named fish was already in one's inventory. All open water testing was done with sufficient skill to avoid catching extra Carp (formerly junk).
| Pagle Fish | Sample Water | Pagle Fish Catch | Total Regular Catch | Percentage of Regular Catch with Pagle Fish | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total/Average | 275 | 6235 | 4.4% | ||
 | Flying Tiger Gourami | Pool (Swarm of Panicked Paddlefish) | 45 | 1018 | 4.4% |
| Open Inland Water (Townlong Steppes) | 46 | 1017 | 4.5% | ||
 | Mimic Octopus | Pool (Reef Octopus Swarm) | 43 | 1035 | 4.2% |
| Open Coastal Water (Krasarang Wilds) | 53 | 1103 | 4.8% | ||
 | Spinefish Alpha | Pool (Sha-Touched Spinefish) | 45 | 1050 | 4.3% |
| Open Sha-Touched Water (Kun-Lai Summit) | 43 | 1012 | 4.2% | ||
All the catch percentages shown above are between 4 and 5%. There is no evidence that any one Pagle fish is more common than any other.
There is a very slight bias towards open water catches: 4.5% average from all open water, vs 4.3% from all pools. This could be a statistical glitch. However, the pool data was gathered with an Ancient Pandaren Fishing Charm active, and it is possible that the Charm only affects the regular catch.
For example, with the Charm active, 20% of the regular catch will be 2 fish, rather than one. So when fishing pools, our Charmed loot window will have opened about 170 (a sixth) fewer times during each test than when fishing open water: 170 of those pool lootings contained two catches, rather than one, so we reach our thousand target with fewer loot windows.
- If the Charm also added 20% to the chance of catching a Pagle fish, this would make almost no difference to the proprtion of Pagle fish caught. Almost, because there would theoretically be a tiny chance of 2 Pagle fish appearing at the same time, which can't happen because they are unique.
- If the Charm only adds 20% to the regular catch, overall our pool sample would be 133 Pagle fish against about 2,585 possible lootings: 5.1%, which is considerably higher than the 4.5% open water figure we are trying to match.
So the Ancient Pandaren Fishing Charm probably does not explain the small difference in catch rates between open water and pools. And the Charm may indeed increase the chance of catching a Pagle fish from any one successful cast, although perhaps not by enough to offset the extra time spent moving and casting into pools. Probably and maybe because the sample sizes are too small to be sure. The theory that the Ancient Pandaren Fishing Charm adds to the chance of catching a Pagle fish is important, because it suggests that even rarer catches are influenced by the Charm. A 20% bonus when trying to catch a Tiny Red Carp or Sea Turtle could save a lot of time!
In practical terms, all this suggests that all sources of Pagle fish have identical catch rates. Charmed fishing of densely packed pools (such as those found during pool migrations) will be comparable to fishing open water with sufficient skill. The choice is yours.
