Yuletide Pack - Level 100 Gears

Yuletide in July is back! With that, you can get Level 100 Yuletide gears. Here are the stats!
Thanks Timmy for the majority of the gear stat pixs!
Thanks James for the Queen's Color Guard Shako, Winter Palace Robe pix!
Thanks to Calamity Pixieshade for the Winter's Whispering Axe pix!

Fishing in Wizard101

So you're wanting to be a fisherperson? Well it's a perfect way to pass by the time. So many people are confused about a few things. I thought I'd talk about them here.

If you still feel lost about the fishing basics, you should read this guide. But I want to mention a few things again that I'm constantly asked about as well as offer a few tips that is not mentioned in the basic fishing guide.

How To Get An Epic Fish!

Some Epic fish like the Rune fish is easier to spot who is Life will RARELY pop up in a pond filled with death and fire fish. It took me 3 days until I finally could see a Life light in this Mirkholm Keep, Grizzleheim pond. That's when I knew the Rune Fish was ready for me to reel in.

But some Epic fish are the same color as other fish in the same pond like the Silver Streak fish. So for fish like Silver Streak, I suggest to reel in EVERY fish that is the same school as it and hope it's the one! Sometimes you get lucky and you see it load which is a major clue too. Just remember, Patience and Persistence is the key to Fishing. It is not supposed to be so easy that you finish your entire fish collection in a few days. But don't worry, you WILL eventually get it. It took me a week to get most of the rare fish to be honest.

 I would suggest you to buy some Major Luck Elixir before even casting out a lure for it if you do find it! Otherwise, you could lose it and you don't want to do that. There was a great tip from Patrick who suggested scaring away the fish that you don't need, so the ones that remain you know for sure you need. This saves on energy, so you don't have to use the Reveal Fish School so much. And you know for sure they're the ones you need like Ice if you want a Polar Bear Acuda, so you don't scare them off.

But if you are SURE that the fish that you are searching for is not in the pond, I suggest you scare everyone away, so when you come back, you will know that the pond has restocked. Sometimes just for the heck of it, I fish the entire pond out, so I can sell them for gold. It's up to you.

To find out what fish is available, what schools are they, and more, this guide is for you!

If you want to know which fish is by world, this should suit you better.

Fish XP - How To Earn Them

First Catch XP

First time you catch a unique fish, you will get a large First Catch XP. Every time you catch a new fish that you have not gotten before, you will get a First Catch XP which is an one time bonus XP.

Regular XP

But then if you catch that same fish again, you will get a super low XP. This is to encourage you to find more unique fish to earn major First Catch XP and level up. 

There are currently 63 fish that we know of and counting. I'm pretty sure there's a few more that we haven't not found yet. All of their bonus XP definitely don't add up to Rank 10 for sure. I have 61 Unique Fish and I'm almost to Rank 8 with 10k to go. So it is clear that we will have to fish for thousands of fish for their regular XP, just to gain enough XP to get to Rank 10.

The Fish School Colors - What Am I?

Confused about which color is which? Don't fear. Take a look below.

The Fish School Colors

Balance, Ice and Storm

Fire is orange, Ice is Blue, Life is green with leaves, Storm of course purple, Balance is red, Death is black as night and Myth is yellow. Like the life, I wish the others had that little bit of something else. I loved the leaves with the life light, to be honest. It would be cool if we saw school icons floating in the light as well. It would definitely help pinpointing them better imo.

If you feel frustrated, just go to another area and try to reel in another fish then come back to the original site.

Will I Really Get A Lot of Fish?

Some people are in disbelief that they can even get to 100 fish. But believe it or not, soon your fish basket will be so full that you can't even fish anymore. Then off you will go to either Lucky Hookline or the Grizzleheim fishering bears to sell them, so you can have more room. Don't worry, you will eventually get your badges and XP. Just remember, unique fish gives First Catch XP that will help you level up. And even if you get common fish, they're still good because you can sell them for gold. That's how I went from 0 Gold To Max in no time!

Developing a Fishing System

It's best to develop a Fishing System so you don't focus on one fish all of the time. For instance, I would go to Emperor's Retreat since you will have the Recall. Then when I'm done searching for the Silver Streak, I press for the Oasis, so I can farm for Sturgeon General in Entrance Hall.

Then I press my Mark where I marked the Mirkholm Keep pond to check for Rune Fish. When done, I press for the Northguard where I can run to Vigrid Roughland to fish for the Polar Bear Acuda.

That's FOUR spots already. And to repeat that cycle, I simply go back to the dungeon before the time is almost out. One of the developers did say it takes 15-20 minutes for a pond to restock itself. So the Dungeon Recall timer is great to keep you on track!

So plan your fishing in advance for success!!

People are so confused about this. Honestly it IS confusing even for me. There's two size types for fish; one is length and one is body type. 

Keeper refers to the Length size as in Small Fry, Keepers, Whoppers.

Regular refers to the Body Type size as in Wide, Tall or Regular.

Have you noticed Sun Rays are very wide or Cuddlefish are very tall or the Cudas are regular sized? That's their body type. You need to place them in tanks that won't cramp their style.

But then there's Sun Rays who are Whoppers, so Whoppers need MORE space as well because sheesh, you just hooked in a super large Fish who need more space for its wings. Think about this way, if you caught a Small Fry Sun Ray and you placed it in a Whopper Large Tank, it'd be too much space for that tiny fish.

I recommend you focus on Keeper tanks because you will acquire quite a lot of Keepers when fishing.

If you need help knowing which fish belongs in which tank, we do have a guide for you!

Meanwhile...

Frodo Silverscale doesn't just sell Aquarium Tanks and buy your fish. He also sells Mega Pet Snack recipes!! He even has Rank 9 and 8 Pet Snacks available. Also some people encountered a bug where you can fish in your houses, but no there's NO fish available in those ponds. But maybe someday?!

And when I landed in the Commons, the GobblerFish loaded. I fished the entire pond out with NO luck. I only scared away one fish and I hope it wasn't the GobblerFish. Is this a trick or someone else reeled it in or a glitch? Nobody knows since this fish is STILL not found yet. But will you be the one to find it? Time will tell.

Also this cute Vampire Squid popped on the Launcher then quickly removed. We have no clue if it does exist in-game or it was leaked way too early since this fish is not ready. Who would want this? I DO! Even as a pet, it would be super epic.

So far, I'm impressed with the Fishing. It was a nice diversion. I can't wait for the day it is added to Pirate101, if it ever will be. I also can't wait for us to fish in our own houses officially too.

The developers did a nice job tweaking the bugs. I just hope that they add even more rare fish because I'm not looking forward to catching thousands of fish to get to Rank 10. Oh well, we'll figure it out. We always do find a way!

The One Eyed Albino Shark

 I don't know if you read the news or heard of this. But a commercial fishing crew caught a pregnant Dusky Shark legally in Mid-2011 off the coast of Mexico. When they cut the shark open and they realized that it was pregnant, but with an special surprise. Apparently, the Dusky Shark was pregnant with an albino "cyclops" shark. Scientists has said that this fetus is legitimate, however it wouldn't have likely survived in the wild.

photo credit: Pisces Fleet Sportfishing

I instantly thought of Pirate101. Imagine an in-game Boss that was a mature albino Cyclops shark? Now that would be quite a character! I like seeing unique characters, so an albino one-eyed shark would be cool to see. If you're an albino with one eye, you will stand out for sure and I can imagine it to be a rough character. Being an one eyed albino in the wild will have turned you into a super super tough character just because you had to be to survive.

Or maybe even as a cute little pet?!

What do you think? Would you like to see such an animal in-game for Pirate101?

Post comments below to give your opinion!

To Pirate Or Not To Pirate?

Dan Hibiki was playing "Skull Girls" and he successfully finished the single player campaign when he got a strange message. "What is the square root of a fish? Now I'm sad." This baffled him so much that he took to Twitter to tweet Skull Girls directly and he got an answer that he didn't expect.

Apparently being lazy was an excuse for him to pirate a game. He swore up and down that he was going to buy a copy ANYWAY. In the end, a very generous SkullGirls fan gave him a copy of the game, so now he owns one legally. 

What I commend the most is the way SkullGirls reacted. They kept their cool and they reacted kindly. Kudos to SkullGirls!

But the moral of the story is DONT PIRATE! Don't cheat, steal, copy, edit a game! This takes money out of the company's pocket. Don't say, "Oh well they have plenty of money." What if you're not the ONLY one doing it, then how can they keep the game running? They can't and in turn, you lose access to a fabulous game.

On a positive note, I have received a SkullGirls game as a gift. To support the fabulous SkullGirls, I will try it out and review it, so stay tuned!

Game Cards: Is It Worth It Or Not?

Okay so, yep this is gonna be all about game cards. 

I was chatting with a dear friend, Timothy Titan, about game cards. I remember back in 2010, I was so excited to go to the local Rite-Aid and get a Wizard101 game card so I could get a Defender Pig. I would run around so proud and thinking I was the ultimate wizard with my little pig at my side.

I always wanted to collect all of the game cards until I realized that some pets weren't that useful. And then pet pavilion came along and allowed me to be able to hatch for those useful game card pets which saved me money. That just made my interest wane even more.

But then eventually, I started realizing that the game card pets were boring because they all looked alike, wasn't all useful and they were easily obtained through hatching.

Then Pirate101 came along with its own new set of game card pets. I was confronted with a dilemma. Should I really care or not? Now let me be brutally honest here. I don't. They all look alike and not all of them are useful. The only reason I get those game card pets is for research and to hatch with others to help them complete their collection. Now with the pet pavilion, it has now become even more easier to get a game card pet if I need it, so there's no rush for me to scramble and try to get all of them.

It's like if McDonalds send out a set of toys that looks exactly the same but has the same card in their Happy Meals. People won't rush out for it. But if the set of toys were ALL unique, then yes that's something you would want to get to complete a collection. The cards it came with would not matter as much as the actual toy. The fact of the matter is that you can easily buy crowns online, so going in the store to get crowns should benefit you even more or even motivate you to do it.

So I was thinking of how to keep the game card pets interesting even after the initial SQUEE is over. I think that all game card pets should have its own unique look. Personally, I love pets for its looks more than talents, powers or cards. Having 5 sets of a pet that looks exactly the same except it has its own talent/power/card. Eh. Even if the pets had an useful talent/power, it would be transferred to a better looking pet and then the original game card pet would be forgotten.

Imagine all game cards had its own unique weapon, you would want to get all of them, right? That should apply to pets as well. They should have their own cool special animations too. Especially when Pirate101 is introducing a new line of game card pets with new names. Confetti Dragon for Pirate101, for example, I was hoping this pet would randomly throw confetti, but alas it doesn't. What if the game card pets had their own animations? That would be cool esp if the pets have a theme.

So my opinion is, to update the pet's looks so they have their own special look and animation perhaps. They also should be sold online. I mean I don't want to schlep to countless stores just to try to get a pet that looks like the others. I would hatch for it instead or not even buy it.

But what do you guys think? Do you think the game card needs improvement? How?

Post your ideas and thoughts in the comments below. 

Hook, Line, Sinker & Spiral Cup Bundle

With the new gauntlet, we get to teach those pigs another lesson in how to do magic properly! Apparently those snooty pigs think a tad too much of themselves, so we are asked to whip their egos back into shape.

We get to duel the Pigswick student. We end up meeting those three little pigs which had interesting last names. Strawhouse, Stickhouse, Brickhouse. I just wonder where's the wolf huffing and puffing their houses down? Now this was my most favorite pop culture reference really. There's more funny references like this in the gauntlet, but you will have to find out on your own.

But one thing you have to think about is... Is this a clue that we will see a Wysteria expansion in the future? Is it even possible? 

In this amazing gauntlet, you can get your own Pigswick school gear as drops! Yep, you heard it! Not only that, you can get new pets dropped as well, such as the Purple Spider, the Rude Goblin and the Dill Piggle. You do get dropped pets that are already available such as Silverback Wildclaw, Mustard Troll, etc..

This bundle comes with an incredibly adorable Pegasus Pony pet, an amazing Tanglewood Vine mount and cool gears of course that comes with a Wand book.

And if you notice, Tamworth Brickhouse mentions "Next Tournament." Don't think that we won't see them again because I am betting that we will or I'll huff and puff and blow your house down.

PS: A Dead Dragon for a Death School teacher? Oh I wish!!!! 

To read more about what this bundle contains, go to:

http://www.starsofthespiral.com/spiralcupgauntlet

Fishing has come to the Spiral of Wizard101! Lucky Hookline has arrived in the Commons to teach us a thing or two about how to reel in a Whopper!

This is great for the causal gamer who isn't rushing to do gardens or pet training. You can take all of the time in the world to catch a fish. Just remember, fishing uses the same energy as gardening and pet training.

I just hope that they will balance it a bit better for the serious gamer who doesn't like being stopped on their fishing quest because the energy potion ran out or for those who want to focus solely on fishing. It also will be slow going for crafters who will need fish for their crafting recipes, especially when you can't trade fish in shared bank.

Hey, a serious fisherperson knows that when it's on, it's SO ON. Everything is out of the window. The only thing you can think of is getting them all! Time to finish another collection! BOOYA!

You can reel in 47 different fishes which is awesome! Some are super hard to get, some are super easy. If you're bored from doing the gardens, raising a pet, questing or even pvping, you can simply instead work on completing your fish collection!

You can work on setting up your own aquariums to put your fish collection in. You can buy three sets for 750 crowns each. It comes with one Long, Tall and Standard Tanks per purchase.

Now, there are 

39 Fishes that can fit in Standard Aquariums

4 Fishes that can fit in Long Aquariums

4 Fishes that can fit in Tall Aquariums

If you want aquariums for the ENTIRE fish collection that is available, it will cost you 29,250 crowns. Yep, it'll cost you a pretty penny! Just don't forget that you can actually craft the Aquarium tanks from Frode Silverscale in Northguard, Grizzleheim. This way you can save on crowns, but it'll mean serious fishing since the recipes now include fishes.

Now, go and get your gear and bait ready! Soon we will find out who is a true fisherperson.

To read more about how to fish and also to view the Aquarium recipes, go to:

http://www.starsofthespiral.com/fishing

To see what fish there is available that you can catch:

http://www.starsofthespiral.com/fishguide