Secrets of the Tuskarr: The Cheena Vala
I have to say, I still have a pretty soft spot for the Tuskarr. They're sort of minor players in Northrend, overall. You help them kidnap some kids and fight off some vikings, grab a penguin pet and a fishing pole, and you're done, and on to bigger and better things in other zones. They don't even merit art for their females. Still, they're always pretty jovial, they look like big fat and happy dudes, and they got turtle boats. It's difficult not to like them.
One of the things they did is spur me to finally get a character maxed out fishing. I was always sort of planning to, one of these days, seriously, but it took the Tuskarr to push me over the edge, just because they made it so chill and awesome. Ok, so the epic fishing pole probably had something to do with it too, but still.
The fishing pole isn't the only thing they use to fish though. You've probably noticed those suspended fishing nets dotted around the coastline near their villages. They're a nice little touch of ambiance and setting. Here's the cool thing though: They're taken directly from real life. Tipster Jason pointed this out to us a while ago. Apparently, you can find these exact same nets at Fort Kochi, in India.
They're called the Cheena Vala, or Chinese fishing nets. You can see pictures and video of them in action at this link. Wikipedia also has some nice information and history on them, including some interesting theories as to the origins of the nets, which, according to local lore, were installed somewhere between 1350 and 1450.
It's not anything that has a massive impact on how we play the game, but with all the pop culture references Blizzard sticks in for us, it's sort of cool to see a few random history lessons too. As a Tuskarr fan and a History buff, I approve.
