Leveling Cooking w/o Fishing. Huge mistake?

[itwasfree]

tldr;
I'm currently leveling cooking completely off mob drops as I quest. I've had no problems up to now. Wondering if at 60, I'll have wished I'd fished along the way for recipes/consumables. What should I know?


Context:
I've been leveling cooking as I grind up simply because as a warrior, it saves me a fortune on food and it's incredibly convenient. The is a first for me though, because I've primarily played UD Warlock/Feral Druid and thus food/drink have never been an issue.

Likewise, I've always avoided fishing as it seemed incredibly dull. However, while perusing a cooking guide, they highlighted the synergy in leveling Fishing + Cooking (for cheap leveling recipes). Meh, I'm getting by fine off mob drops.

However, before I completely forget about fishing, I'd thought I'd ask to make sure I'm not missing anything important. [Like, XYZ cooked fish recipe brings in bank. If you're going to get 300 cooking anyway, definitely max fishing.]

Thanks for taking the time!

[pootpoot]

Yes, its gunna be hard.

[SpNiz]

I maxxed cooking with the cost of about 15g. 5+g that I paid for the portal to Darnassus. I'm a rogue with Thistle Tea so I bet that made it easier. But it's not hard and doesn't take long!

Remember to buy the recipies from the goblin on the Tanaris coast. From 225 to 300 skill you just do the Raw Spotted Yellowtail all the way. Costs you like 2g for 300 fish. Cheap! I also haven't trained Fishing yet.

[The Shortest Path]

I got my cooking to 250 entirely through drops from following vanillaguide questing. It worked out pretty damn well.

[Norjak]

I have leveled several toons to 300 cooking without fishing - I don't have the patience or time to level fishing in vanilla.

[itwasfree]

Alright. I'm level 34 with 225 and a shit ton of Raptor Meat, so I'm coming up to the last stretch. [Which sounds like I may have to buy some fish for.]

Would be rather shit to have go to fish my brains out. But if the pay-off is worth it, I'm happy to bite the bullet.

Was less concerned about getting to 300, more that once at 300 will I be buying expensive fish anyway to make nice food for myself/for money.
Back in the day on retail, I remember cooking being not an unprofitable thing to have, since many plebes like myself under-appreciated how useful it was. This server of course attracts a more experienced player-base, so perhaps most people already have cooking negating/fishing a lot of that.

[Norjak]

Once you hit 225, tender wolf steak will get you to 300, and the mobs who drop wolf meat are plentiful in WPL+EPL if you're leveling there. Also, the monster omelet recipe from giant eggs, which drop from Hinterlands owlbeasts.
It isn't too much trouble if you're leveling anyway.

[Talryx]

I am totally failing to see why it matters. If you suddenly decide later that you want fishing, you can just fish and sell the fish instead of cooking them.

I will say this - leveling fishing why you are leveling your character is easier than doing it after the fact, since you will have to go to some low areas in the beginning to get your fishing high enough to even fish in the higher areas. However, it's a minor inconvenience at best.

[itwasfree]

I am totally failing to see why it matters. If you suddenly decide later that you want fishing, you can just fish and sell the fish instead of cooking them.

I will say this - leveling fishing why you are leveling your character is easier than doing it after the fact, since you will have to go to some low areas in the beginning to get your fishing high enough to even fish in the higher areas. However, it's a minor inconvenience at best.

It's partly inconvenient. And it's part hearing that cooking is a bitch to level past 225 without fishing. So if I'm going to need fishing anyway, I'd rather not painfully get cooking to 300 and then have to go back and do fishing, and get a bunch of fish I could have used for cooking. You know?

However, if cooking will continue to be a breeze to 300 as it has up to 225, then yeah. Fishing can totally wait.
[I also heard that fish are cheaper to cook with. Since soothing spices cost a couple silver.]

[Bioness]

You can usually level cooking easily by buying fish and other stuff off the AH for dirt cheap. I really wouldn't worry about it as Cooking is the fastest profession to level.