World of Warcraft is not a simple Massive Multiplayer Online (MMO) that you can just breeze through. Besides the importance of leveling your character and Raiding for better equipment, you also have side activities to keep you busy in between. For example, increasing the level of your Profession will give you the potential of acquiring valuable items or powerful potions. You also have the opportunity to increase your Hero's potential even more by learning more valuable tools with the Secondary Professions. In this WoW Classic Cooking and Fishing guide, we’ll discuss the possibility of this worthwhile Profession and argue why it can be helpful to your account.
The Art of Cooking
Cooking is the fine art of managing food and preparing it for consumption. Everybody appreciates it, but only a few know the legitimate ways to handle this task. This type of craftsmanship has been with us since our ancestors created a catalog of what we can taste and what we need to avoid. World of Warcraft somehow seems to want to emulate the ways of the real world in their fantasy setting. In WoW, we see some of the Cooking skill’s intricacies in a somewhat less complicated fashion.
Before you get started, make sure to store all the cooking recipes and keep all the usable loot (like meat) safe in the bank so that when the time comes, you’ll be able to prepare some of the best meals in the game. Depending on your Cooking level and the materials, you’ll get the chance to develop items that can do many things besides the universal healing, which is why this Secondary Profession is a must-have if you want to participate in some Raids in the game.
How Does Cooking Help Your Character?
Besides the apparent healing factor from all of the meals (for health and mana), there are other ways that the rarest meals can improve your performance. For example, the “Tender Wolf Steak” can heal for 1392 health, plus give you Stamina +12 and Spirit +12 for 15 min. Similar meals can provide further increases in stats for your character. Due to these peculiar adjustments, Guilds in World of Warcraft tend to have a couple of members with Cooking maxed out. This gives the group mighty meals to aid them in Raids that can help tanks endure more damage or increase the attack for the DPS (Damage Per Second) players.
On the other hand, you always have the option to sell your mighty meals in the Market. Making your Secondary Profession another tool to increase the gold income and become rich in the world of Azeroth. In other words, even if you do not practice Raiding, you can always gain a positive outcome when you max out Cooking.
When Can You Start Cooking Meals?
Like all of the Professions in World of Warcraft, you need to reach level 5 in your character and have one copper coin available. Afterward, you can increase Cooking as your character reaches the higher levels in Classic.
What’s the Cooking Guide for the Horde Faction?
Here’s the step-by-step leveling guide for Cooking for the Horde faction:
- Reach level 5 and find the first trainer (remember to ask a guard for guidance) around the main cities.
- To unlock Expert Cooking, buy the cookbook from Wulan in Desolace.
- To unlock Artisan Cooking, pick up the quest “To Gadgetzan You Go!” from Zamja in Orgrimmar.
What’s the Cooking Guide for the Alliance Faction?
Here’s the step-by-step leveling guide for Cooking for the Alliance Faction:
- Reach level 5 and find the first trainer (remember to ask a guard for guidance) around the main cities.
- To unlock Expert Cooking, buy the cookbook from Shandrina in Ashenvale.
- To unlock Artisan Cooking, pick up the quest “I Know A Guy…” from Daryl Riknussun in Ironforge.
WoW Classic Cooking Leveling Guide 1-300
Like any Profession in World of Warcraft, you have different trainers that require different Cooking and Character levels. In this case, you have the following:
- Apprentice Cooking: Requires level 5 and costs one silver to start this adventure.
- Journeyman Cooking: Requires level 10 and Cooking Level 50.
- Expert Cooking: Requires level 20 and Cooking Level 125. You need to buy the “Expert Cookbook” for one Gold.
- Artisan Cooking: Requires level 35 and Cooking Level 225. Also, you need to complete a quest to unlock the last part of this Secondary Profession.
Suggested Recipes for Cooking Per Level
To reach a higher level in this Secondary Profession, we’ll give you some options:
For Apprentice Cooking:
- Charred Wolf Meat OR Roasted Boar Meat (1-50)
For Journeyman Cooking:
- Smoked Bear Meat (50-70)
- Boiled Clams (70-85)
- Crab Cake or Cooked Crab Claw (85-100)
- Seasoned Wolf Kabob (100-130)
For Expert Cooking:
- Curiously Tasty Omelet or Hot Lion Chops (130-175)
- Soothing Turtle Bisque or Roast Raptor (175-200)
- Spider Sausage or Roast Raptor (200-225)
For Artisan Cooking:
- Monster Omelet or Tender Wolf Steak (225-275)
- Smoked Desert Dumplings (275-300)
Additional Cooking Tips
Preparing Meals: to start earning points in this Cooking Profession, you need to be close to any fire source. You can either start a fire, look for a campfire, or find a chimney in any inn to achieve this. If you want to start a campfire in any part of Azeroth, you’ll need both “Flint and Tinder” and “Simple Wood” in your inventory.
Buying Ingredients: In WoW, different recipes require multiple ingredients to complete a meal. NPCs (Non-Playable Characters), especially the General Goods Vendors, can give you some of these items for a lower price. Sadly, this option is only viable in this Secondary Profession's early stages.
Questing for the Goods: Some of the tasks you’ll undertake will require you to hunt and kill several monsters. Depending on the map, you’ll get the chance to acquire ingredients while leveling your character. Taking this into consideration, always keep an eye on what you’re selling to the merchants.
What Are the Best Cooking Recipes?
It all depends on the Class of your Character; some recipes can give you increased main stats or increase your mana/energy.
- Stamina: Tender Wolf Steak, Monster Omelet, Spiced Chili Crab, Dirge’s Kickin’ Chimaerok Chops
- Melee: Grilled Squid, Thistle Tea (Rogue)
- Mana: Runn Tum Tuber Surprise, Nightfin Soup
How to Master the Art of Fishing
WoW Classic isn’t all about adrenaline-pumping adventures where you crawl through dungeons and slay monsters all day long. You’ll also need other activities to balance the excitement and find equilibrium. One possible activity is to find a body of water (can either be a lake, a river, and even the sea) and spend some time fishing. You may also find some answers to your troubles while doing so.
Like any other Profession, you’ll need a trainer and some items to begin the process. First of all, your character needs to reach level 5 and have a silver coin to spare. You’ll also need to visit one of the main cities and ask any of the guards to guide you to the Fishing Trainer. On top of this, you’ll need to buy a Fishing Rod (for just 23 cooper coins) and some Fishing Lures. After all that trouble, you need to walk towards any body of water and lose yourself in the middle of your thoughts as you keep throwing the Lure in the same spot.
If you can find a School of Fish (represented as a white circle in the water), you’ll gain levels faster and only see a particular fish there. Once you reach level 20 and have a Fishing Skill of 125, you have the option to train even further and become an Expert. You’ll need to travel to Booty Bay and talk with Old Man Heming this time around. With the aid of a single Gold Coin, you’ll become a Fishing Expert and increase the level cap to 225.
Last but not least, once you are at level 35 and reach 225 in the Fishing Skill, you’ll have the latest milestone to fulfill. Since Classic WoW doesn’t have any of the expansions, Artisan Fishing is the last step in becoming the Fishing Master. To unlock this final part, travel to Dustwallow Marsh and find Nat Pagle. This time around, this NPC (Non-Playable Character) will give you a quest from which you’ll have to hunt for some rare Fish. After completing the requirements, you’ll ascend to Artisan as a reward.
Taking Advantage of Your Fishing Skills
Players tend to increase both Cooking and Fishing simultaneously since you’ll need some types of Fish as ingredients to cook exceptional food. Because of this, you’ll have potential healing items that also improve your primary stats. On the same boat, you have Primary Professions such as Alchemy that require ingredients from beneath the water.
So if you have some interest in any of these other Professions, you’ll have enough ingredients to increase your Skill levels and unlock better options. On the other hand, you also have the potential to sell these items in the Auction House and quickly get some coins in your pocket.
These unusual items are the ones you should keep an eye on:
- Deviate Fish (For Alchemy and Cooking)
- Pearls (Different Professions)
- Stonescale Eel (Alchemy)
- Winter Squid (Cooking)
Final Advice
Cooking and Fishing in World of Warcraft Classic go hand in hand; if you want to improve your Cooking (or even Alchemy), Fishing is almost a requirement if you’re on the hunt for those unique ingredients. As such, it’s best to always keep a Fishing Rod in your inventory and try to hunt some Fishing Schools as you explore the different maps of Azeroth. Plus, with Cooking, you’ll be able to concoct and sell culinary masterpieces in no time at all.
