This topic attempts to answer the question, what fishing skill will I need to fish in a certain zone? It considers:
The Problem
What fishing skill will I need to fish in a certain zone is not an unreasonable question to want an answer to. But getting a straight answer to this seems to be remarkably difficult. There is general agreement that higher level zones require a higher fishing skill. To quote the book called WoWWiki, "Zones usually have a fishing level of 5 times the average level of monsters in them, but some zones vary considerably from this rule of thumb."
The problem with documenting what skill is needed is that there is only one reliable benchmark: Can I cast a line or not? If I can't, whatever skill I have is insufficient, but I have no way to know how insufficient: I might be one point short or a hundred points short. If I can cast a line, there is no reliable way to tell how much I exceed the base skill requirement by. A rough guess can be made from the proportion of fish that get away, but this is not normally accurate because while you are experimenting, your skill is improving.
Existing Sources
I started by comparing three separate lists of recommended fishing skills by zone. Note that the minimum "recommended" skill doesn't mean the base skill. The sources are: Draznar, Deedoohangus ((in French)) and Razorfold. I have sorted the zones by level (taken from the official Flight Path Maps). Level is typically the level range of the monsters and quests in the zone.
Capital cities have been listed alongside their starting zones. However, the waters of the capital cities are widely regarded as more difficult to fish than starting zones. Moonglade is a Druid training ground covering all levels, but I have classed it alongside neighbouring Felwood. Zones with no recommended skill are not listed.
| Zone | Level | Draznar | Deedoohangus | Razorfold |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dun Morogh/Ironforge | 1-10 | 1-50 | 1-50 | 1-55 |
| Durotar/Orgrimmar | 1-10 | 1-50 | 1-50 | 1-55 |
| Elwynn Forest/Stormwind | 1-10 | 1-50 | 1-50 | 1-55 |
| Mulgore/Thunder Bluff | 1-10 | 1-50 | 1-50 | 1-55 |
| Teldrassil/Darnassus | 1-10 | 1-50 | 1-50 | 1-55 |
| Tirisfal Glades/Undercity, The | 1-10 | 1-50 | 1-50 | 1-55 |
| Darkshore | 10-20 | 50-80 | 50-100 | - |
| Loch Modan | 10-20 | 50-100 | 50-100 | - |
| Silverpine Forest | 10-20 | 50-105 | 50-100 | - |
| Westfall | 10-20 | 50-80 | 50-100 | - |
| Barrens, The | 10-25 | 50-100 | 50-100 | - |
| Redridge Mountains | 15-25 | 80-120 | 100-150 | - |
| Stonetalon Mountains | 15-27 | 75-125 | 100-150 | 55-130 |
| Wailing Caverns | 15-21 | - | - | 55-130 |
| Ashenvale | 18-30 | 75-150 | 100-150 | 55-130 |
| Duskwood | 18-30 | 95-150 | 100-150 | 55-130 |
| Hillsbrad Foothills | 20-30 | 100-155 | 100-150 | 55-130 |
| Wetlands | 20-30 | 105-150 | 100-150 | 55-130 |
| Thousand Needles | 25-35 | 75-125 | 100-150 | 130-205 |
| Alterac Mountains | 30-40 | 150-170 | 150-200 | 130-205 |
| Arathi Highlands | 30-40 | 150-180 | 150-200 | 130-205 |
| Desolace | 30-40 | 100-175 | 100-150 | 130-205 |
| Stranglethorn Vale | 30-45 | 150-250 | 150-200 | 130-205 |
| Badlands | 35-45 | 175-225 | 150-200 | - |
| Dustwallow Marsh | 35-45 | 150-300 | 150-200 | 130-205 |
| Swamp of Sorrows | 35-45 | 175-225 | 150-200 | 130-205 |
| Feralas | 40-50 | 150-175 | 150-200 | 205-300 |
| Tanaris | 40-50 | 225-275 | 200-250 | 205-300 |
| Hinterlands, The | 45-50 | 200-245 | 200-250 | 205-300 |
| Blasted Lands, The | 45-55 | 235-265 | 200-250 | - |
| Azshara (Bay of Storms) | 48-55 | - | - | 300+ |
| Azshara (Mainland) | 48-55 | 200-275 | 200-250 | 205-300 |
| Felwood | 48-55 | 175-250 | 250-300 | 205-300 |
| Moonglade | 48-55 | - | - | 205-300 |
| Un' Goro Crater | 48-55 | 225-275 | 250-300 | 205-300 |
| Burning Steppes | 50-58 | 240-290 | 300+ | - |
| Western Plaguelands | 51-58 | 255-270 | 250-300 | 205-300 |
| Eastern Plaguelands | 53-60 | 265-280 | 300+ | - |
| Winterspring | 53-60 | 250-300 | 300+ | 300+ |
| Deadwind Pass | 55-60 | - | - | 300+ |
A few zones clearly break the relationship between level and fishing skill, and have a lower fishing skill requirement than predicted by their level: Desolace and Feralas in particular. Perhaps level is not such a useful guide?
Trial and Error
The method used to accurately determine the base fishing skills of zones is simple, but very time consuming: Travel round a series of zones. Attempt to fish in each zone you visit, but never catch anything (so skill never improves while you are travelling). After visiting all the zones, fish and gain some additional skill. Then go back round again. Several different attempts can be made at each location with the same personal fishing skill by using different lures and fishing poles.
I increased the skill level tested by five points at a time. This means that the results may be wrong up to 4 skill points. For example, I might have found that I could not fish with an effective skill of 50, but could fish with 55 skill. The base skill could be anywhere in the range 51-55, but I am assuming 55.
It is not practical to fish everywhere: Even with access to all the relevant flight paths, it would take days just to travel. I selected a range of zones that were relatively easy for the young dwarf I hired to reach. To reduce time spent travelling, the locations fished are close to flight masters.
Tests up to skill 205 areas were conducted by the dwarf I hired, using this method. The remaining 330 skill zones were check by me personally (with 300 personal fishing skill).
| Zone | Location | Inland or Coastal | Base Skill Requirement |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arathi Highlands | Near Stromgarde Keep | Inland | 130 |
| Ashenvale | Astranaar | Inland | 55 |
| Azshara (Bay of Storms) | Bay of Storms | Inland | 330 |
| Barrens, The | Ratchet | Coastal | <1 |
| Darkshore | Auberdine | Coastal | <1 |
| Darnassus | Tradesmen's Terrace | Inland | <1 |
| Deadwind Pass | Near Karazhan | Inland | 330 |
| Desolace | Near Nijel's Point | Inland | 130 |
| Dun Morogh | Iceflow Lake | Inland | <1 |
| Duskwood | On road to Redbridge | Inland | 55 |
| Dustwallow Marsh | Theramore Island | Coastal | 130 |
| Eastern Plaguelands | Lake Mereldar | Inland | 330 |
| Elwynn Forest | Goldshire | Inland | <1 |
| Feralas | Feathermoon Stronghold | Coastal | 205 |
| Feralas (Jademir Lake) | Jademir Lake | Inland | 330 |
| Hillsbrad Foothills | Southshore | Coastal | 55 |
| Hinterlands | Quel'Danil Lodge | Inland | 205 |
| Loch Modan | The Loch | Inland | <1 |
| Redridge Mountains | Lake Everstill | Inland | 55 |
| Stonetalon Mountains | Mirkfallon Lake | Inland | 55 |
| Stormwind | The Canals | Inland | <1 |
| Stranglethorn Vale | Booty Bay | Coastal | 130 |
| Tanaris | Steamwheedle Port | Coastal | 205 |
| Teldrassil | Rut'theran Village | Coastal | <1 |
| Western Plaguelands | Chillwind Point | Inland | 205 |
| Westfall | Longshore | Coastal | <1 |
| Wetlands | Menethil Harbor | Coastal | 55 |
| Winterspring | Frostfire Hot Springs | Inland | 330 |
| Zul'Gurub | Near entrance | Inland | 330 |
There are only five skill levels listed: <1, 55, 130, 205 and 330. However, the first (<1) is misleading. Some of these locations are a lot less than one (almost no "get-aways", even at around skill 1), and some are only slightly below one (possible to fish at skill 1, but with a very high proportion of "get-aways" at that skill). Gut feeling is that the base skill in the easiest zones is about -70, and in the harder zones is about -20. These are impossible to confirm, because there is no way to maintain constant fishing skill below 75.
A Simple Answer
In the Gazetteer topic I showed that fish catches in each zone match one of just six possible patterns. Surprisingly, when I grouped zones by base skill requirement, almost every single group fitted perfectly within one of the six groups created for fish catches. The only zone that did not fit the pattern was the Alterac Valley battleground. I'm almost certain that base skill requirement is directly related to the fish catches that are possible in the zone. So, even though I have not confirmed the base skill requirement of every single zone myself, I believe the table below can be used as an accurate summary of base fishing skill requirements. Prove me wrong...
| Base Fishing Skill Required | Zones |
|---|---|
| <1 (-70?) | Dun Morogh, Durotar, Elwynn Forest, Mulgore, Teldrassil, and Tirisfal Glades. |
| <1 (-20?) | The Barrens, Blackfathom Deeps, Darkshore, Darnassus, The Deadmines, Loch Modan, Orgrimmar, Silverpine Forest, Stormwind City, Thunder Bluff, The Wailing Caverns, and Westfall. |
| 55 | Ashenvale, Duskwood, Hillsbrad Foothills, Redridge Mountains, Stonetalon Mountains, and Wetlands. |
| 130 | Alterac Mountains, Arathi Highlands, Desolace, Dustwallow Marsh, Scarlet Monastery, Stranglethorn Vale, Swamp of Sorrows, and Thousand Needles. |
| 205 | Azshara, Felwood, Feralas, The Hinterlands, Maraudon, Moonglade, Stranglethorn Vale (Jaguero Isle only), Tanaris, The Temple of Atal'Hakkar, Un'Goro Crater, and Western Plaguelands. |
| 330 | Azshara (Bay of Storms, Hetaera's Clutch and Scalebeard's Cave only), Burning Steppes, Deadwind Pass, Eastern Plaguelands, Feralas (Jademir Lake only), Scholomance, Silithus, Stratholme, Winterspring, and Zul'Gurub. |
Remember these are the minimum skills required to cast a line. To fish without any "get-aways", you will need to add 95 to the base skill requirement.
Further Reading
- Getting Started - This chapter contains an introduction to fishing skill.
- The Role of Skill - This topic considers the role skill plays in fishing, including how skill changes the proportion of fish that "get away".
- Gazetteer - This topic develops a simple gazetteer that shows which fish may be caught in which zones.