Fishing Lesson

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Fishing Lesson was a virtual representation of one of Eivor Varinsdottir's genetic memories, relived by Layla Hassan through the Portable Animus HR-8.5.

Description

Eivor encountered a small girl at a pier searching for her brother.

Dialogue

Eivor found a girl yelling at a pond.

• Nel: I see you! Mother is going to be so angry.
  Come out, Walter! You can't hide from me!
  Walter! This isn't funny anymore!

On a nearby crate, Eivor found a note.

Fishing Poem

Dewy day has dawned!

Poor Peter peers in the pond.

Hopes and wishes to see silvery swishes

Of fine, slippery fins of fishes.

She approached the girl.

• Eivor: Who are you yelling at? I see no one.
• Nel: My brother! He's right in there! A goblin turned him into a fish.
• Eivor: A goblin turned him into a fish?
• Nel: He won't come out of the water to do his chores. Mum's going to be so angry. O, whatever will I do?

The girl walked off the dock, giving Eivor room to fish.

• Nel: I've got to get him out of that pond. It won't be easy, he's mean and slippery. Walter! You're gonna be in so much trouble when mum hears about this. She told you not to talk to goblins!

Eivor pulled out her fishing line and cast it into the pond.

• Nel: That's not the right fish. My brother has brown eyes.

Eivor may have stepped back from fishing and spoke to the girl.

• Nel: You're no help. My brother is swimming around this pond!

A fish took the bait and Eivor pulled it ashore.

• Nel: That one smells like my brother, but it's not him.

Eivor cast her line back into the pond.

• Eivor: I am not convinced at all that your brother is under a goblin's spell.
• Nel: Keep fishing!
  I've got treats for you, Walter. Worms and such.

Once Eivor reeled in another fish, the "bewitched" brother emerged from the bushes nearby.

• Walter: Another one! That's enough.
• Nel: Walter! Stay in the bushes!
• Walter: We've got all we need.
• Nel: We don't have them yet, you pudding head!
• Walter: Don't call me names.
• Nel: Pudding head! Pudding head!

Eivor approached the children.

• Eivor: Your brother looks pretty healthy... for a fish.
• Nel: We thought it would be fun to get someone else to do the fishing for us.
• Eivor: So you "fooled" me.
• Nel: And it worked! If you like, you could leave us the fish anyway. We'll swap 'em for brittle at the market.

Gave the fishKept the fish

Eivor left the fish for them on a nearby barrel.

• Nel: Walter, we got the fish! Thank you, stranger!

Eivor walked away without another word.

• Nel: What? No fish?

Outcome

Eivor fished up two fish at the behest of the brother and sister.

Behind the scenes

Unlike parts of the main story that allow "fishing" with arrows, this memory cannot be completed without unlocking the fishing line, which is done by renovating the Fishing Hut at Ravensthorpe. The game specifically checks for fish pulled in via this method before advancing the girl's dialogue and triggering Walter's appearance. This makes "Fishing Lesson" one of only two world events in the game that require specific Ravensthorpe renovations before they can be be completed, the other being War of the Collectors.

While the pond may spawn bullheads and perch—common fare for small bodies of fresh water within Oxenefordscire and throughout Mercia—for the player to catch, the game prioritizes giving Nel the largest available bullhead in the player's inventory, regardless of where or when it was obtained. If no bullheads are available, the game will hand over the largest available perch. No other species of fish from other bodies of water—including those that share the fresh water habitats of bullheads and perch, such as brown trout—are eligible to fulfill the objective.

It is possible to reel in two fish to trigger Walter to appear, sell all fish in the inventory at the nearby merchant in Oxeneforda, then return to talk to Nel afterwards. In this case, clicking on the basket will only display a message to "Give Fish," leaving the memory active until the player obtains another bullhead or perch from the pond—which can be more conveniently obtained with arrows—or walks far enough away from Nel.

After talking to Nel again, fast traveling away keeps the memory active but places Eivor outside the boundary she must cross for the "no fish given" outcome, which will trigger and conclude the memory as soon as Eivor steps back within range of Nel. Thus, it becomes no longer possible to trigger the "fish given" outcome.

References

• Assassin's Creed: Valhalla