Cooking and clams get more convenient changes in patch 3.1
by Daniel Whitcomb 
Mar 14th 2009 at 3:00PM
The patch notes for the 3.1 PTR have recently been updated, and they have quite a few nice updates and a few things that should make things more convenient for cooks everywhere. We were promised cooking would be easier in 3.1, and these patch notes definitely deliver on that promise. Let's check out the changes (compiled courtesy of MMO-Champion), which include even easier campfires and those 2 promised recipes: * A new recipe has been added to cooking trainers for making Black Jelly, using several Borean Man 'O War as ingredients. While it looks disgusting, it restores more health and mana than the highest level food.* Flint and Tinder is no longer necessary for creating a campfire. You're just that resourceful!
* Ingredients such as Spices, Apples, and the like have been removed from most cooking recipes.
* Players no longer need to complete the Clamlette Surprise quest to gain Artisan cooking. The quest now offers the unique recipe, Clamlette Magnifique. If you already completed the quest, you can visit Dirge Quickcleave in Gadgetzan to learn this recipe (for free).
* Several Northrend recipes were given greater skill up ranges to make it easier to reach 450 cooking skill.
* You no longer need to learn cooking from books. The trainers have finally done their reading and are able to teach you the same thing.
Streamlining the way we learn the cooking skill seems to be one of the themes of these changes. Not only do we no longer have to do the quest for Clamette Surprise to learn Artisan cooking, but even the cookbooks are a thing of the past. It's at least one or two less hoops to jump for, and very nice for newbies and alts, letting them focus on leveling and questing instead of running halfway around the world for a basic skill.
Of course, most dedicated cooks are still going to want to do the Clamette Surprise quest, since it gives a new cooking recipe, Clamlette Magnifique. One more option to level cooking is always good, plus it means less trouble for chefs in trying to smuggle recipes between factions to get Chef de Cuisine. And hey, that's not the only decent Clam related news in this patch. They've finally managed to fix that silly clam stacking bug. Loot recovered from a clam, whether you were mounted or not, will automatically stack coming out of the shell. That was definitely an annoying bug, and this fix will a godsend for my Murloc slaughtering sprees.
In more straight up convenient changes, Northrend cooks will find it easier to skill up. Not only will we be getting a new recipe for the Borean Man O War (Mmmm, delicious, delicious Black Jelly), but we'll be seeing existing Northrend recipes gaining greater skillup ranges. Hopefully this no more grinding of annoying feasts. Not that I won't still grind em. Small Feasts are hilarious.
Finally, Flint and Tinder is no longer needed for campfires at all. I suppose if we're resourceful enough to find wood for a campfire anywhere, we should be able to find two sticks or rocks to bang together for a spark, right? Of course, I didn't have a problem with needing it anyway. I always kept my pocket knife around.
Extra non-meat or fish ingredients for food is also apparently going away for many recipes. Of course, this is a trend that's been around for a while, as many Outland and Northrend needed no spices either. Of course, it's likely Northern Spices are sticking around. What else are we going to use all these Dalaran Cooking Rewards for?
Patch 3.1 brings us Ulduar, dual specs, significant changes to all the classes, and more! We've got you covered from top to bottom with our Guide to Patch 3.1.Filed under: Cooking, Patches, Analysis / Opinion, News items, Wrath of the Lich King
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Draol Mar 14th 2009 3:12PM
Excellent! I've always wanted to get cooking up in time on my alts. Not needing that bloody cooking quest makes it ten times easier.
DeathPaladin Mar 14th 2009 3:16PM
Of course this happens after I hit 450 cooking and get my Chef title *grumble grumble*
Also, if for some reason clams end up being still bugged in one way or another, I move that clam meat gets moved to the currency tab.
Meethan Mar 14th 2009 5:55PM
Getting chef pre 3.1 is like M'uru pre-nerf!!!
Amaxe Mar 14th 2009 11:08PM
Well, at least I can say I got *something* pre-nerf (hit Chef, Northrend Gourmet and 100 Cooking Awards achievements yesterday). My last 3 cooking achievements (unless Blizz adds more)
Lagren Mar 15th 2009 9:24AM
This would have been a lot more awesome for me if it'd happened BEFORE I ground back all my Bloodsail rep so I could talk to Dirge Quickcleave... ah well.
CTD Mar 14th 2009 3:16PM
I have a feeling this will be the last clam patch we'll be seeing for a while. Kinda makes me sad.
Kemikalkadet Mar 14th 2009 7:25PM
Every patch is a Clam patch.
Elvrag Mar 14th 2009 3:18PM
This is great but it makes me feel as if wow is becoming too easy
Dightkuz Mar 14th 2009 3:30PM
THIS is what makes you realize that WoW is becoming too easy?
Yorthae Mar 14th 2009 3:19PM
This whole cooking change is kind of sad, Blizz is taking ALL challenge out of this game.
codespace Mar 14th 2009 4:11PM
Cooking is challenging?
Yorthae Mar 14th 2009 4:36PM
Only in that you need to go gather mats and have the ability to make fire. If they're removing the fire aspect and dropping minor mats then what the hell?
Rugus Mar 14th 2009 4:55PM
Some stuff in Wow is just boring or "not perfectly" implemented. If they make it a little more interesting, much better. Also, many things were balanced for level 60 in mind, then 70 and 80 came and something had to be changed. At the end of the day easy does not mean "boring". It means you can do more things in less time, thus allowing people with less time to play more intensively and seeing more stuff.
codespace Mar 14th 2009 5:44PM
Tedious doesn't mean the same thing as challenging. Farming a variety of mats and then clicking "Build Campfire" (after purchasing flint and tinder and simple wood from a vendor) wasn't a challenge, except insofar as it was a challenge to remember to actually keep that stuff in inventory.
I appreciate the streamlining of otherwise tedious processes, to be honest.
Balius Mar 14th 2009 6:29PM
The challenge they're removing is the challenge of staying interested while you farm easy to get meat in incredibly large amounts, and the necessity of going back to town to cook.
Tedium should NEVER be the means a game uses to create difficulty.
K Mar 14th 2009 3:19PM
I bet the Man 'O War nodes are going to be the new killing grounds on my server for a while...
evankimori Mar 16th 2009 12:22PM
I have an entire guild bank tab filled with em ready to become the reigning king of the market to those who need it. :D I've caught so much of it while levelling cooking that it's sickening. Hello bulk sale to raiding guilds!
On the plus side: enjoy your poverty and welfare tickets you food vendors. I'm never buying a dang thing from you again!
Kaphik Mar 14th 2009 3:19PM
WOW! This is really dumbing down the game. Why not just give everyone max cooking skill to begin with, like our superfluous language skills?
It took me about 2 - 3 hours tops to start at zero cooking skill and get up to 350 at level 70. That was going out and grinding up 95% of the mats required.
There's less and less challenge every day in this game.
Mityap Mar 14th 2009 3:22PM
I agree, this is dumb change.
Cooking was easy to begin with... blah.
Aries Mar 14th 2009 9:20PM
2-3 hours? You sir, are lying. Why even make such a claim?
Leveling cooking from 0 to 350 takes at least 24+ hours (probably even longer) if you are grinding out all the meat/mats yourself instead of buying it on the AH.
I've leveled cooking on 3 toons now and there is no possible way you did all that in 3 hours. Hell, the travel time going around the world to farm all the mats and buy up/farm all the recipes is more than 3 hours.