I : More types of fish
Self explanatory, and I'm sure we all agree we need it.. dont we?
II : Specific Fish
In its basic, we could have fish living in the sea, and different fish living in the rivers. In its more complex version, an adaptation of the circles (remember the not-so-old mining system?) could be used, to determine where specific fish could be found. This would allow fishing to become similar to mining, with secret areas for best fish et cetera.
III : The one that I caught was that big
Make fish unstackable, and give them a quality rating (tiny, small, medium, large, extra large, huge); in order to actually use the fish, you have to clean them. So you use a fishing knife (new item) to convert them into 'cleaned XXXXX fish' meat which can be eaten (and stacked). Also better quality (ie larger) fish will give more meat per fishy.
IV : Attributes
I would make fishing dependant on the following factors:
Perception and Agility determine the chances of catching the fish
Dexterity would determine seperatly the chance of pulling the fish up
Strenght would determine the maximum size of the fish caught.
Chance of catching fish = [Perception*Agility* [some constant for each type of fish]/ (size of fish-strenght)]*dexerity
V : Fishing Boats
In its simplest form, a few wooden tiles in the middle of the sea, which would allow the player to catch better (different types of fish); acessable only if you buy a ticket from the dock to hire the boat
VI : Fishing Methods
Fishing Rod: Same as used currently
Spear: Would be single use if you miss, however it allows you to catch larger fish, though not useful if you'r going to catch a small one; needs good perception and aim
Trap: Used in shallow areas (near reeds) in order to catch smaller fish. I would imagine it following a rot routine (similar to current farming), and then can be USED to draw it back from the water to get the small, yet plentiful fish
Lobsterpot: Used to catch lobsters and craps, which would be hard to catch; and very rare and expensive, so only for the rich. However must be cooked by a professional beforehand.
Small net: Used to catch smaller aquatic creatures like shrimps, which could be later used as BAIT in order to increase chances. Or eaten in emergencies
Fishing Rod with floater: A fishing rod which is used for surface fish, which are smaller and easier to catch. For beginners, yet requires a substantial perception
VII : Bait
I would make the fishing rod single-handed, and leave the other free, or to add bait. Bait would be worms (dug up from the ground), or shrimps (caught using a net), or snails (found with herbs). Using it would increase chances of catching a fish by 50%, and reduce chances of catching something else by 25%. Bait is used up, and can only be used with rods or traps or lobsterpots.
VIII : Fish recepies
Fishsoup: Uses small types of fish
Fish steak: Uses large fish and grills them
Cooked lobster: An expensive meal for special occasions, and only for the rich, as lobsters are very rare and hard to cook
Breaded fish/shrimps: Uses flour and a fish in order to created a breaded fish (yeah yeah similar to 'fishfingers')
Note that each of the above should be different for each fish
IX : Alternatives
Items which you can catch by mistake. R denotes rivers and S denotes the sea
A skull [S] : Spooky, probably came from a ship
Coins [S in large amounts][R loose change]: Either remains of treasure, or just someone who dropped something
Ring [R]: Someone's dropped a ring, highly corroded
Bottles of Wine [s]: Very good quality wine from a sunken vessle, had loads of time to ferment down there
SOS Parchment [S]: Someone's in trouble (just something stupid)
Treasure map [s R]: A good initiation to a static quest
Shoes [r] : Someone's lost them
Boots [S] : Someone's dropped their shoes
Amultet [r] : Someone's dropped something so precious, its ruined by now, but still useful
Decayed cutlass [s]: Came from a ship that sank; a pirate ship?
Empty Bottle [S] : The cork came out from the wine, and there isn't anything left inside
Bucket [s]: The irony of it all
Pipe [r]: Someone was smoking by the river when it fell
Wooden boards [s]: Must have come off a sunken vessel
The above are a few ideas, better than just lamps IMHO
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There you go, those are a few of my ideas, and I hope you will like them and hopefully see them IG in the future
