Save Yourself Time

2011-12-29T04:00:00Z

Remember that the following ports: Skara Brae, Jhelom, and Trinisc

are all on the same server. Once in the area, you can recall to all three docks for doing your quests. Saves tons of sailing time!

If you hang in the area where the servers intesect near Buc's Den, you can really minimize your sailing. Still need to make a trek to Moonglow or Emporium, but the rest are pretty easy.

The server map can help:

More Information from a developer ("borrowed" from Stratics)

2011-12-27T18:13:07Z

Original Questions given by BluDjinn
Original Answers by James Nichols of Mythic.
Answers further modified/clarified by Basara.
Q1: How does the Fish Monger reputation work ?
How do we gain /lose reputation ?
James: You gain reputation by finishing quests. You lose reputation by quitting (abandoning) quests. REJECTING a quest, by not accepting it in the first place, does NOT affect reputation in either direction. Only quests accepted, then abandoned, cause reputation loss.

Q2: Are the quests timed ? Do we lose reputation for taking too long?
James: Take all the time you like, it is not measured

Q3: Are we better off doing one quest at a time? Or can we just get quest from all the mongers at once? If so does it matter in which order we hand them in?
James: You can have a quest from each of them at the same time. There are 8 fishmongers. It doesn’t matter what order you hand them in.

Quote:
Q4: How much do each of these actions help/hurt?
(Original Answer by James - Modified by Basara for what ACTUALLY occurs)
Fish types you have never had a quest for before start at 10 fish requested. Each time you complete an order with a specific fish, the next time you get an order with that fish the quantity will increase by 5, to a max of 20. Once you turn in a quest for 20 of a fish type, that fish type will reset to 10. The cycle then repeats.
Note that you can (and often will) get multiple fish quests for the same fish, once you start getting multiple multi-line quests. These SHOULD cause the counter to advance when turned in (not confirmed) out of sequence.
However... Each time you abandon a quest with a specific fish, the next order you get with that fish will be 5 less quantity than the last one of that type given to you. This SHOULD be the only way you get a quest requesting 5 of a type.

Q5: How does the monger decide which quest to give us?
(Original by James, modified by Basara)

The fish monger chooses randomly between a list of fish based on your fishing skill. This can be of any type of fish you can currently catch.

You start out with single-fish quests. The game keeps track of each fish type you are eligible to catch* and how many times you have filled a quest of that type, and this factors into your chance for multiple-line quests.

The chance of a 2-line quest is based on the percentage of eligible fish types you have filled at least one quest for. (note that "based on the percentage" does not mean that it's 100% if you've done all the fish. There may be an additional modifier that reduces it to where it's not 100% certain)

If this chance results in a 2-line quest, then the chance of a 3-line quest is based on the percentage of eligible fish types you have completed quests for at least twice.

If this results in a 3-line quest, then the chance of a 4-line quest is based on the percentage of eligible fish types you have completed quests for at least three times.

This progresses until you are getting orders for 6 fish.

*Note that the "eligible fish types" appear to add the Dungeon Fish types to the calculation sometime between 100 & 105 skill (when you can start fishing for them), though you don't actually start getting quests for them until 106 skill (possibly an artifact of earlier changes to the quest system at the 100-106 level). This causes a sudden resurgence of 1, 2 and 3 line quests in that range, as the total fish types increase by about 50%, and resolves itself as you do multiple quests requesting the dungeon fish.

The number of different fish types in the order is always random, the only thing that changes is the odds for multiple lines (which the more quests you fill, the better size your future quests will tend toward, except for that blip at the start of the Dungeon Fish range).

Q6: Is it based on reputation with just the monger we are dealing with, or on our standing with all the mongers as a whole?
James: Reputation is pooled among all fishmongers, they talk to each other through a secret chat channel.

Q7: What role does the RNG play in this ?
James: As listed above, the kind of fish are random, the number of fish are random and the prizes are random (within categories - see below).

Q8: How is the reward for finished quest decided?
(rewritten by Basara)
There are categories based on order size (point value). There is some overlap, but you get different prizes for a small order than you get for a big order.

The size of the order is weighted depending on whether you are catching shallow water fish (x1), deep water fish(x2), or dungeon fish (x3). Crustaceans (Crabs & Lobsters) were meant to count as deep water fish, but currently only count as shallow water fish. This bug has been reported, and has been stated to be corrected in the forthcoming Publish 70.

Rewards (at each category level) appear to be divided into the same 4 types, within the categories.

Common Reward: Bait Cup. The amount of uses will be ONE HALF the point value of the quest (rounded down, if the point value was an odd number). As a result, many people use the Bait uses, not the real point system, as a point system for tracking quest rewards. Bait for rarer fish becomes available as your reputation improves (and you turn in higher-value quests).

Uncommon Reward: Lava Fishing Gear. These will be Lava Fishing Poles, or Lava Lobster Traps. Currently, no one knows exactly where we are to fish with the Traps, as no one has reported catching anything (and are, in fact, told that no fish are biting). However, the Fishing Poles ARE useful for catching some very rare lava-dwelling "fish". Unlike fishing poles on the regular shard, Lava poles eventually wear out and break (much as the ones on Siege Perilous do).

Rare Reward: Fishing Guidebooks. These Books (presumably 6 - I've not seen anyone report actually getting #6 yet) give some information as to the various fish types (shallow, deep, crustaceans, dungeon, and the REAL rares). the first 4 types are basically just cataloging the "normal" fish & crustacean types, while books 5 & 6 tell of the very rare types, and hint to where they might be caught.
Books 1, 2 & 4 appear to be the Tier One book rewards. Book 3 is quite a bit rarer, and may be on the second tier of rewards. Book 5 appears to be on the third reward tier. Note that the lower books can drop from higher tiers as well (as you go up tiers, the new books are added to the existing list, instead of replacing them).

Rare Reward: Fishing Powerscrolls. These are the rarest rewards (for now - books might become rarer, or be given a use). Available in 105, 110, 115 & 120 skill varieties, these also appear to follow the pattern of the Books (in that when you become eligible for the potential of a higher PS to drop, it is just added to the random list, instead of replacing the lower ones). In other words, just because you are eligible for a 110 or 115 to drop, doesn't mean that you won't be getting 105s occasionally.

Q9: Does reputation play a part?
James: Only in that it will limit the sizes of your orders

Q10: Why sometimes does a player receive a scroll, and the next time some bait or a book for the same weighted quest?
That is completely random. However, there are 4 order sizes which map to 4 categories of prizes. Each category has its own set of bait, books, scrolls, etc. (see Question 8)

Q11: Books? what are they good for? Are they just a useless "you lost the RNG" toss prize? Or do they have some use now or later, In other words, is it ok to just toss them or do I need to take up valuable storage space saving them for some later use?
James: They tell you where the fish are, and they are collectible. We realize that the books are dropping more than is appropriate. We want to improve the rarity of books and will be scheduling changes in an upcoming publish - we will let you know more when we have additional details.

I would just toss them unless you know someone who wants one. If there is ever an occasion to need one, you can just do the quest a few times and get another one. They are there as a collectable and to give you information about fish.

Thanks all!

__________________
James Nichols
Assistant Community Manager
Mythic Entertainment | An EA Studio
Follow me on Twitter! @JamesMythic

Fishing Quests

2011-11-13T17:28:43Z

UOGuide has a nice write-up describing the Professional Fishing Quests (the only source of 120 fishing scrolls):

http://www.uoguide.com/Professional_Fisher_Quest

New Rewards for the Fishing Quest

Fish hooks are attached to fishing poles to give them special properties, double click the hook and then select the pole to use it
Fish bait may be used together with fish hooks.
Junk Proof Hooks: Using a junk proof hook will ensure you don’t catch shoes.
Dredging Hook: Using a dredging hook will increase the chance of pulling up things from the depths that are not fish.
Lava Hook: This is replacing the lava fishing pole and has the same effect, the main difference is that hooks are stackable.
Oracle of the Seas: This reward looks like a blue spyglass and is used to find charybdis. Double click it to locate the monster. The monster location is good for 1 day. Locating the monster consumes a charge, fish oil can be used to bring the charges back.
Charybdis bait: Can be used on a fishing pole. When at a location identified by the Oracle of the Seas, fish using charybdis bait to start the encounter. You may have to fish several times to get the charybdis to rise.
Improved magical fish bait: The Order of the Dragonfish has discovered ways to improve fishbait for magical fish. (technical note: the way fishbait works essentially is by giving you a certain number of rerolls when trying to catch certain fish, the improved fish bait is simply giving you more rerolls)

New Sea Encounter

Charybdis: This is a new sea encounter that requires special items from the fishing quest to start. Warning: the Charybdis is a dangerous monster and you should only provoke it when you have 2 or 3 friends to help and a fast ship in case things go south!