VFS vs FS — What's a Verified Fishing Session?
3 min read
Two Ways to Fish
Every time you go fishing with DerbyFish, you choose a mode. A Verified Fishing Session (VFS) or a regular Fishing Session (FS). The difference is simple: one counts, the other is for fun.
What Is a VFS?
A VFS is a GPS-tracked, evidence-collected outing. You start the session in the app. Your location is recorded. Every catch you submit goes through the full verification pipeline — photo, measurement, species match, AI scoring.
VFS sessions cost BAIT. One dollar per hour. That fee funds the verification infrastructure: the AI models, the captain reviewers, the blockchain proof layer. It keeps the system honest.
What Is an FS?
An FS is a casual session. No GPS tracking. No verification pipeline. You can still log catches, take photos, and share with friends. But those catches don't carry verification scores.
Think of it like pickup basketball versus a league game. Both are basketball. Only one goes on the record.
Why Verification Matters
Fishing tournaments have a trust problem. Every year, headlines pop up about cheaters stuffing lead weights into fish or submitting old photos. The whole sport suffers.
VFS solves this with three layers:
- AI analysis — Computer vision checks your photo for species match, measurement clarity, and signs of manipulation.
- Captain consensus — Human reviewers (licensed captains) confirm or dispute the AI's call.
- Blockchain proof — Every verified catch gets a tamper-proof record on the Flow blockchain.
No single layer is perfect. All three together make cheating extraordinarily difficult.
When to Use Each
Use VFS when:
- You're competing in a derby
- You want catches on your permanent record
- You want to climb leaderboards
- You're building your FishDex with verified entries
Use FS when:
- You're practicing or scouting
- You're fishing casually with friends
- You want to log catches without the verification overhead
- You're teaching someone to fish
The Bottom Line
VFS catches count for competition. FS catches are for you. Both show up in your profile. Only VFS catches carry verification scores and earn leaderboard points.
You decide which mode fits the moment. Every time you launch a session, the choice is yours.