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All of the latest Mists of Pandaria newsBreakfast Topic: Have you ever won the Fishing Tournament?
by Fox Van Allen 
Jan 21st 2012 at 8:00AM
Winning the contest is simple ... in theory. Once the contest starts at 14:00 server time, fish in every pool in Northrend you can find until you get a Blacktip Shark. When you get it, bring it back to Dalaran. There's a lot of luck involved, but the contest is definitely winnable, especially now that it's been out for over two years.
The derby offers some pretty sweet rewards. It's the only place in the game where you can obtain an heirloom ring. (You could opt for boots that increase your fishing skill by 15 instead, but who'd ever choose that instead?)
Do you participate in the Kalu'ak Fishing Derby? Have you already won your Dread Pirate Ring prize? Or is the random nature and high competition level of the contest simply not worth your time?
Filed under: Breakfast Topics
Reader Comments (Page 4 of 5)
robsmith77 Jan 21st 2012 11:20AM
I've won the Kalu'ak Fishing Derby twice. First time I picked up the boots, second time the ring. Much like after I won the Stranglethorn Fishing Extravaganza twice I am now officially retired from the Derby!
evoxpisces Jan 21st 2012 11:28AM
No but then again I never tried.
Jayfitty Jan 21st 2012 11:36AM
I've won twice. I won the Booty Bay tourney back during BC, long before people did it for achievements. I was on a fishing kick and thought it would be fun to try and win, which I did and got the fishing pole.
I did the Kaluak derby a few months ago and got the ring. I don't think a lot of people do that one so it was less of a feat than the BB tourney. But I won and got the ring.
I'd like to try and win both again for the fish trinket and the boots...and bragging rights.
Pam Jan 21st 2012 11:36AM
Funny story.....
It was getting towards the end of Wrath, and we were all kinda bored, kinda goofy. There was a guy in another guild that I had become quite flirtatious with.
We were all in Wintergrasp, being goofy and flirtatious in /1, mostly because him and I were on 2 different sides of the map. Some people were joining in, and we were having a blast. (We are a small server that everyone knows everyone else).
I can't remember exactly what I said, but it must have been something that was probably crossing the line into ...ahem...overtly ....ahem...*blush*....ANYWAY....I was kicked from the raid.
This was before you were auto ported out of WG if you were kicked, so I just grabbed the flight path back to Dalaran. When I got there, I noticed the fishing tourney had just started.
I immediately flew out to Dragonblight, and started fishing. A couple of casts in, I noticed that I had the shark! I hearthed back, and turned it in.
There were a few people talking in trade about the tourney after it was over, and I was telling my story about being kicked from the WG raid. At that same moment, WG was over, and the RL that kicked me had just made it back into Dalaran and was like "You mad?"...
I was like "Nope, you did me a favor! I won the fishing tourney!"
Tarvos Jan 21st 2012 11:46AM
No, what's really unfair about the whole Fishing Tournament for me is the time they are both scheduled for. Saturday and Sunday afternoon? I've got crap to do on the weekends - if I'm not at work, then I'm cleaning around the house and being social. That's why I advocate for having at least one tournament on the weekdays - give us weekend workers a decent shot at it.
Scuac Jan 21st 2012 3:34PM
This! So much. I cannot play at the times these tournaments are held. So never going to get Salty. Blizzard should really consider rotating them across the days of the week. Say once a month they move ahead one weekday.
GerardthePriest Jan 21st 2012 12:23PM
Won the STV contest my first try, but 2 or 3 attempts at the Kalu'ak one and I never saw a shark. Now that I no longer spend time in Northrend I'm not motivated enough to go back and try.
ravyncat Jan 21st 2012 12:25PM
I haven't won yet, but I also haven't tried much.
My server is an hour faster than my real time and Fridays are guild nights so I am always up until late. This kills me because my weekly work schedule is 4am-1pm, so staying up until 3am makes Friday a very very long day. Thus, by the time I wake up on Saturday--hell yes I am sleeping in after that--the tournament has not only started, it has been won.
That doesn't mean I have given up hope though. This is just not the achievement I am looking for most right now. I'll try for it sometime when I'm on vacation.
Congrats to everyone who has won it!
Dastalis Jan 21st 2012 12:28PM
I quit trying to win won years ago, although I'd love to get the Salty title one day.
A couple of months ago I was leveling a warlock through Northrend and he needed some fish to skill up his cooking. I noticed the time and decided to only fish from pools just in case. Caught the shark in the third pool and almost fell out of my chair. I wasn't keeping track to see if someone had already won, but hearthed to Dal anyway. I turned it in a bammo! I only hope they make the individual cheevos account wide in 5.0. This alt will never be my main and I really hope to get Salty on my main someday.
madfigs Jan 21st 2012 12:35PM
I've never been able to participate in the Derby since I work on Saturdays, but the STV tournament was the bane of my existence for a long time. I've always loved fishing but I could never manage to win the tourney, and every time I'd try I would be irrationally furious about losing. It was especially weird because raid wipes, pvp kills, frustrating quests, and the like don't bother me! Something about it really got under my skin, until one week I promised myself I would quit WoW forever if I didn't win. Sure enough, that was the week I finally succeeded and I'm still using the Salty title almost a year later :)
Luci Jan 21st 2012 12:36PM
I leveled fishing back in TBC and have always been a trooper about it. I don't mind it. After many attempts I finally won the STV fishing extravaganza! It was awesome. However, that was before there was a Kaluak one.
I am a major altoholic with an army of alts and heirlooms, so I want the ring! I haven't managed to get it yet. :(
One time I got the shark. It happened to also be the one time I had forgotten to set my hearth to Dalaran. (This was in the time period after Cata dropped, but before they added portals back to SW from Dalaran). I had been flying back all the way from Venture Bay to Dalaran, praying I would make it. Low and behold Dalaran materialized in front of me the way it does when you're flying up to it. INSERT MAGE NAME HERE HAS WON THE KALUAK FISHING DERBY!
....NOOOOOOOOOO
Haven't gotten a shark since. Also haven't had my hearth set anywhere but Dalaran since.
Additionally, my fishing-hater husband decided to level it on one of his toons back when queues took a long time. He decided to do the Kaluak one bc he wanted the ring.
He got it on his first attempt ever.
Needless to say I was mortified. I have been fishing for YEARS and trying to get this ring for months. Now he's always like, "You haven't gotten that ring yet?!"
Shaktee Jan 21st 2012 12:57PM
Well, I was going to do the Derby. But not now.
Neirin Jan 21st 2012 1:01PM
I won the tournament because I was leveling through northrend when the tournament started and I just happened to be near a few pools. I think I got the shark on my 4th cast. RNG ftw? or is it ftl for the 3 85s fishing in the same spot as me?
Tauren Fan Jan 21st 2012 1:01PM
Won the Northrend contest once on my main, during the lull before Cataclysm. Caught the shark off the southern coast of Dragonblight only to realize my hearth was on cooldown! I was on the edge of my seat flying back to Dalaran, certain the winner would be announced at any second. It was one of the most memorable moments I've had in the game.
Now if I could just fish up that elusive dark herring...
hunter.wrekh Jan 21st 2012 1:12PM
I won both of them. Each time my heart was pounding like a truck when I was turning in the quest.
kolvir Jan 22nd 2012 9:13AM
Dreadful tournament. I took me about 50 attempts to win it and grab the ring.
The STV one was fairer I reckon, still some luck involved but not as much as you could try and fine zones with less people.
Of course as said by several do not miss the days with few people that how I got my first STV (for the pole). With the second STV victory (2 weeks later) I grabbed the trinket which transforms you into a fish (swim faster and breathe under water).
shotiechan Jan 21st 2012 1:32PM
I've won the Booty Bay version four times now on different characters. I set my hearthstone to the inn right there in BB, then I make sure I have water walking pots and maybe swiftness potions, depending on what class I'm on. Then I just fish til I can't fish no more!
Kazdur Jan 21st 2012 1:52PM
My husband helped me win the STV fishing tournament back when the Salty title first came out. I think it was a holiday and that's the only reason I won it that day, I had been trying for some time. He scouted ahead of me to find the next closest pool and see if we had competition - there was absolutely no one out that day! I'm also stoked they updated the model of the fishing pole you win from it, it now looks worthy of winning such a hard competition. I have never competed since, but I do help my guild-mates just as my husband helped me. My best advice is to bring some scouts and do it on a holiday, when some major event is going on (like football). Good luck to all!
~Salty Wenchie
bethontheharbor Jan 21st 2012 2:07PM
Have tried several times, still have no clue how someones doing it and back in Dal for turn in, in under 7 mins.
Charron Jan 21st 2012 2:44PM
Kirin'Tor ring ports you back to Dalaran, or they temporarily set their hearth.