Summary
So you want to be a fisherman? Fishing is a mini-game that allows you to catch fish, which can be used with the cooking secondary skill. You can also catch fish that cannot be eaten but are instead useful for other Professions. You can even catch equipment, funny items, and valuable gems such as pearls. Fishing isn't for everyone. You'll discover that it requires a lot of patience and time to build your skill level up to the maximum level. While you're fishing you won't be gaining experience, so this development can put your leveling behind, unlike some other Professions. Fishing is great for people who just want to relax and chat while playing. For those who enjoy a calm, relaxing way to play the game while finding useful items, fishing is the cat's meow.
Fishing is a Secondary Profession, which means that it does not count towards your two Profession limit.
See Also:
- The Fishing category for articles related to Fishing.
- The Stranglethorn Fishing Extravaganza!
How to use Fishing
To start fishing, first find a fishing trainer to teach you the Apprentice Fishing skill. Then find a General Trade Goods or Fishing Supplies vendor and purchase a fishing pole. Lures are optional.
Next, find a body of water. Low level areas tend to be easy to fish from, so it's recommended that you start fishing somewhere in a newbie area, since skillups seem far more likely if you actually manage to catch something. Equip the fishing pole in your main weapon hand. It will require both hands empty to wield. Open your abilities menu and you will find Fishing listed. Drag the fishing icon to a slot on your action bar and use this newly created button to cast your line.
A fishing bobber will appear somewhere in the water in front of you, and you'll notice a timer. Move your cursor over the bobber and it will turn into the standard interaction cursor. Wait for the bobber to splash, then click it as soon as possible. Depending on your fishing skill, you will either catch something (which will appear in a standard loot box) or the fish/item will get away. You then have to cast again if you wish to continue fishing. It's possible the fishing timer may expire before the bobber splashes, in which case you'll also have to cast again if you wish to continue.
The higher your fishing skill, the higher the chance that you'll manage to hook a fish/item, rather than it getting away. Higher fishing skill does not improve the quality or type of items you receive, however. In some areas you may find that you can't even cast your line due to insufficient skill.
What type of items you can possibly fish up depends on the region you are in, but different areas within a region will not yield different items or different probabilities that a certain item will be reeled in. There are a few exception to this; for example bodies of fresh water (lakes or streams) will yield different fish from sea water. Schools of fish also spawn in specific types and in specific areas.
In earlier patches, the number of high-value items obtainable from fishing had been reduced, as was the vendor sale price of items obtained through fishing. With the introduction of schools of fish in Patch 1.9, fishing up valuable items is once again more likely, for fishermen who seek out these nodes.
Requirements
None but a basic fishing pole, which costs less than a silver and is readily available. There are two readily available improved fishing poles in the game: A "Strong Fishing Pole" which gives you +5 fishing, and a +3 fishing pole that is available by quest in Auberdine. The +5 fishing pole is available in limited quantities from fishing supply vendors.
Suggested Classes
Fishing is considered a great way for a Hunter to obtain food to feed to their pets to maintain/increase their happiness level. Cooking which raises the minimum level requirement to eat the food increases its effectiveness in this role. Large quantities of fish can be obtained quickly and cheaply by a dedicated fisherman.
Fishing is also necessary to find certain components required for Alchemy.
Fishing, coupled with some decent Cooking recipies, is a good, cheap way to get your Cooking levels up as well.
Fishing may occassionally produce lockboxes that can be used to improve a Rogue's lockpicking skill.
Starting a Fisherman
Alliance
Fish in a low level area (6-10) until your skill is up to around 40 or 50. This should take you 10 or 20 minutes. Be sure to use a Shiny Bauble to buff your skill. Cook the Raw Brilliant Smallfish and Raw Slitherskin Mackerel you catch to start your cooking skill. You can find the recipies at most fishing suppliers. Then proceed to Darkshore and speak with Gubber Blump, on the beach just below the flight master, and Wizbang Cranktoggle who is upstairs at the inn. They will both give you fishing quests so you can gain some XP while fishing. Gubber Blump will also give you a decent fishing pole.
Horde
Unfortunately there are no low level horde fishing quests. However, Horde fishing areas seem to allow catching non-fish items more often than Alliance areas (see what you can catch in the Undercity's canals of green goo sometime).
Boosting Your Fishing Skill
Unlike the other professions, you can boost your Fishing skill considerably with various items, although some are only temporary.
| Boost | Item | How | |
| Fishing Poles (only one can be equipped at a time) | |||
| +3 | Blump Family Fishing Pole | Quest (Alliance Only) | |
| +5 | Strong Fishing Pole | Vendor (Limited Quantities) | |
| +20 | Big Iron Fishing Pole | Drop | |
| +25 | Nat Pagle's Extreme Angler FC-5000 | Quest (Horde Only) | |
| +35 | Arcanite Fishing Pole | Quest (Fishing Extravaganza Reward) | |
| Lures (only one can be used at a time) | Duration | ||
| +25 | Shiny Bauble | Vendor, Quest | 10 min |
| +50 | Nightcrawlers | Vendor, Drop | 10 min |
| +75 | Bright Baubles | Vendor | 10 min |
| +100 | Aquadynamic Fish Attractor | Vendor (Limited), Engineer-Made | 5 min |
| Other (Equip as many as you like, though enchants do not stack) | |||
| +2 | Glove Enchant | Drop (recipe) | |
| +5 | Lucky Fishing Hat | Quest (Rare Fish) | |
| +5 | Nat Pagle's Extreme Anglin' Boots | Quest (Rare Fish) | |
| +5 | High Test Eternium Fishing Line | Quest (Rare Fish) | |
| +152 | Total Possible Fishing Skill Boost | ||
Expert Fishing
To increase your fishing skill above 150, you'll need to buy a book: Expert Fishing - The Bass and You
You can buy this book from Old Man Heming in Booty Bay or at your local Auction House (probably for more, though).
Artisan Fishing
To increase your fishing skill above 225, you'll need to be level 35 and have 225 fishing skill and visit Lumak, the Horde fishing trainer in Orgrimmar, or Grimnur Stonebrand, the Alliance fishing trainer in Ironforge. Both will direct you to Nat Pagle in Dustwallow Marsh (Sitting on an island in Dustwallow Marsh) who will give you a quest to get your fishing to a 300 ceiling.
Fish Worth Keeping
If you're able to heal yourself or have a reliable supply of bandages, you probably won't need to bother keeping and cooking most fish you catch. However, there are some that provide certain buffs (when cooked with the right recipe) that you may find useful. Others are used in Alchemy to create potions and other things.
Alchemic Fish
- Oily Blackmouth - Blackmouth Oil
[Deviate Fish] - Elixir of Giant Growth- Firefin Snapper - Fire Oil
- Stonescale Eel - Stonescale Oil
Buffing Fish
Note: most fish (when cooked) provide the Well Fed effect in various strengths, boosting Stamina and Spirit. The effects of the following fish MAY stack with Well Fed. The pre-1.9 patch notes suggest that this stacking will be "fixed" (removed) in that patch.
I am currently testing the recipies I have to see what stacks with what --Dga
- [Deviate Fish] (cooked into
[Savory Deviate Delight], random transformations) 
[Winter Squid] (cooked into 
[Grilled Squid], +10 agility)
- Stacks with well fed
- [Raw Summer Bass] (cooked into [Hot Smoked Bass], +10 spirit)
- [Raw Nightfin Snapper] (cooked into [Nightfin Soup], restores 8 mana every 5 secs)
- Stacks with well fed
- [Raw Sunscale Salmon] (cooked into [Poached Sunscale Salmon], restores 6 health every 5 secs)
- Stacks with well fed
- [Large Raw Mightfish] (cooked into [Mightfish Steak], +10 stamina)
- [Raw Glossy Mightfish] (cooked into [Cooked Glossy Mightfish], +10 stamina)
- Stacks with well fed
- Stacks with [Mark of the Wild]
- [Raw Sagefish] (cooked into [Smoked Sagefish], heals health and mana, restores 3 mana every 5 seconds for 15 minutes)
- [Raw Greater Sagefish] (cooked into [Sagefish Delight], heals health and mana, restores 6 mana every 5 seconds for 15 minutes)
Container Fish
Several fish you can catch contain other items, so don't forget to open them when you catch them:
- Bloated Smallfish (level 5)
- Bloated Mud Snapper (level 15)
- Bloated Catfish (level 25)
- Bloated Trout (level 35)
- Bloated Redgill (level 45)
- Bloated Salmon (level 55)
Various Clams can be caught in the same way, and should be opened for clam meats, and occasional pearls.
Quest Fish
- Darkshore Grouper - Needed for The Family and the Fishing Pole quest (Alliance-only) in Auberdine that gives Blump Family Fishing Pole (see above).
- Spotted Sunfish - Needed for the Selling Fish quest (Alliance-only) in Redridge Mountains that gives the Murloc Fin Soup Cooking recipe. Note that this fish may also be found as loot when killing the murlocs that live nearby.
Schools of Fish
Starting in Patch 1.9, schools of fish or floating debris appear at set locations along coastlines and rivers. Similar to the schools of fish particular to the Stranglethorn Fishing Extravaganza, players will be able to catch specific fish and valuable items if their cast lands in the school. After several fish are caught, the school will disappear. Schools seem to respawn in a similar way to mineral nodes or herbs.
Types of schools include:
- [Deviate Fish] (in oases in The Barrens)
- [Oily Blackmouth]
- [Firefin Snapper]
- Sagefish
- Greater Sagefish
- Floating Wreckage (containers and non-fish items)
- Elemental Water (rarely found in Azshara area - gives you Elemental Water, Globe of Water, and Essence of Water)
Schools of fish also contain the following valuable items with high frequency. These are the same types of items fished from "floating wreckage":
- Rumsey Rum Light
- Rumsey Rum Dark
- Rumsey Rum Black Label
- [Stranglekelp]
- "Bloated" fish
- Chests containing trade goods and loot
Fishing Locations
- Stonetalon Mountains
- Sun Rock Retreat - Raw Bristle Whisker Catfish (66%), Raw Longjaw Mud Snapper (33%)
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