I am ASynckronism and this time I will be attempting to catch a Blue-blooded Barb, a highly sought after fish usually found in the densely wooded swamps of Reekwater. I am going to try and explore different areas and see how my luck goes in this unfriendly territory.
I reach the crossing into Reekwater and am met with a ruined walkway teeming with Lost occupants. I can handle myself in combat well enough but I am not looking to get into too much combat.
Spooky entrance!
I rush through and when I reach the exit I see a small party of players clearing out the crossing. It's nice to see that the inhabitants of Aeternum continue to take care of routes that others have failed to upkeep.
Then again maybe they were farming the area. Also captured a missed projectile!
I already have a spot in mind to begin. the Glimmerfen, an area drenched in shallow waters patrolled by Angry Earth creatures. I struggle to get past a thicket but manage to find a passage towards the waterfall.
Like a storybook the waterfall hides a secret cavern. I shimmy along the edge up high to avoid detection and cast off. I keep my combat gear equipped in case I get into trouble, I am pretty close to these natural enemies and don't want to get caught up in a skirmish with them in the wrong apparel.
The Electric eel was a surprise catch.
I reel in a lot of normal fish before I remembered that I should be fishing in salt water. I pack up and make my way through reekwaters swampy terrain to the shoreline.
The Vines are quick and durable
I encounter some foes and even pass through a Lost village before making it to a shoreline. I throw out my line but continue to catch relatively normal fish with some more unique specimen appearing.
After a bit I move further down the beach. Aeternums beaches are littered with debris from multiple shipwrecks, I chose to set up on a wrecked boat. I casted off to see if my chances of catching the Blue-blooded Barb would increase but I kept reeling in more of the same variety.
I fished there for awhile, often changing baits to see if I could bring the elusive fish to shore. While the large fish sometimes put up a good fight to bring in, they were not what I was looking for.
I moved further south towards a broken passage that probably held some ancient structure before collapsing into the ocean. The 'ancient' locals, like everything else on Aeternum, were not friendly and I had to navigate the edge to reach the end point.
I sat in the water until the enemy lost interest
Useful when the game launched but recently a useless catch
This spot in particular held a great deal of frogfish that kept catching my hook. Frogfish used to be valuable for alchemy and some cooking recipes but with the recent changes to the crafting system they are considered 'trash catches'. Never the less this meant I was probably on the right track of switching positions.
Day trying to break through the dense fog
I moved once more to the edge of where the river pours into the ocean and after crossing through the rapids before the fall I reached a dry spot to cast off from. Squid begin to appear on my line along with some clams, Besides that though, nothing new.
It had been well over an hour and a half since I started this venture and I decide to call it. Still interesting fish being caught and their materials will be useful to sell or for crafting.
Seems when I try to reel for a target fish I wind up with less success than if I just decided to fish normally. That's the act of fishing though!
Before I quit though I did want to see what the difference was between open casting and Fishing Hot Spot casting. I traveled to a 3-star Rare Fishing Spot to cast into and observe what the real difference was between specific fishing spots and regular water casting.
Not a bad haul. The icons with a line on the top corner are bait.
Material chests reeled in and a reward chest for acquiring an expertise level
Obviously I acquired a lot more rare fish along with some treasure chests, and even the other variant of legendary fish that roams many bodies of water, The Horned-toothed Mandje, but my luck did not grace me with a Blue-blooded Barb.
Luck... Wait a second! I totally forgot that luck was a 'stat' in the game that affected resource harvesting! It's usually a trait on gear, which my fishing equipment has, or consumable buff from food but there are also trophies that increase specific harvest luck by volumes.
I have a house in-game to hold a trophy and plenty of room to place it. I've been thinking of this 'Gamer Fisherman' as a 1 for 1 challenge based on real world elements, "Oh, if I throw out my line anywhere in the zone I'll eventually catch what I am hunting." But actually I need to prepare my character sufficiently enough beforehand before attempting that.
It's such a rookie mistake and my 'Local Guide' understood: "Ah, don’t be too hard on yerself, angler. It happens to the best of us. When the thrill o’ the chase takes hold, it’s easy to dive in headfirst, forgettin’ that fishin’ ain’t just about the cast—it’s about the preparation."
Next time might be better, and if not than at least I'll be fishing!
The exciting thing about fishing is that you just never know what you'll catch or wether you'll catch anything at all. Keep on fishing!