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For lore, see technology and engineer.
Engineering Icon WoW Icon update Engineering (Profession)
Ingredients  •  Proficiencies  •  Quests  •  Schematics  •  Trainers  •  Equipment
Glowstone Technician HS

Glowstone Technician in Hearthstone.

Engineering is a primary crafting profession that can create many useful, unique and amazing items, as well as junk (but often explosive junk!). Engineers can create helpful items for generally all classes to be used in PvE or PvP. To counterbalance this usefulness, most items crafted by engineering require engineering skill to use, and many of these items come with a chance for unexpected backfires with often hilarious results. Hunters in particular see much use for engineered guns and scopes.

Engineering profession recipes are known as schematics. Some notable engineer-crafted items are:

There are also several engineer-only enhancers to gloves, belts, and cloaks (including a well known parachute cloak enhancement).

Grand Master Engineers have access to an auction house of their own faction in Dalaran by visiting Horde Reginald Arcfire or Alliance Brassbolt Mechawrench in the engineer shop Like Clockwork. (Each of these NPCs are visible only to members of that faction.)

For the Alliance faction, Gnomes benefit from a +15 racial bonus to their Engineering skill.

Official overview[]

Engineers take advantage of their inventiveness to create an immense (and occasionally random) variety of helpful items. By tinkering ceaselessly, and tolerating malfunctions and misfires, an engineer can make utterly unique objects: sight-enhancing goggles, potent guns, robot pets, mechanical mounts, and even more unusual trinkets. Successful engineers use their inventions to solve problems and make life easier, faster, and better for themselves and their companions.

The majority of Engineering schematics can be manufactured anywhere, provided you've already obtained the diverse materials necessary for their creation.

It's not uncommon for Engineers to also specialize in Mining - the metals and ores they procure serve as building materials for their inventions.

As you progress in your studies as an Engineer, you'll be given an opportunity to choose a specialization. After completing a unique quest, you can specialize in either Goblin or Gnomish schools of engineering. Each school specializes in crafting unique items, some of which aren't available to the opposing style of craftsmanship.[1]

Training as an Engineer[]

See also: Engineering Trainers

Engineering is taught by various engineering trainers located throughout the world. Prospective engineers must be at least level 5. Initial training costs 10c, granting the Apprentice level with a potential skill of 75 and access to a few starting engineering schematics. More schematics can be learned from trainers or found throughout the world as the engineer raises their skill level.

The following is a breakdown of the engineering profession by expansion:

Expansion Proficiency Skill Schematics
WoW Icon update


Apprentice

Journeyman

Expert

Artisan

1 - 300

1 - 75

75 - 150

150 - 225

225 - 300

Classic
Bc icon Master 1 - 75 Outland
Wrath-Logo-Small Grand Master 1 - 75 Northrend
Cataclysm Illustrious Grand Master 1 - 75 Cataclysm
Mists of Pandaria Zen Master 1 - 75 Pandaria
Warlords of Draenor Draenor Master 1 - 100 Draenor
Legion Legion Master 1 - 100 Legion
Battle for Azeroth - 1 - 175 Battle for Azeroth
Shadowlands - 1 - 150 Shadowlands
Dragonflight - 1 - ??? Dragonflight

Advancing as an Engineer[]

Crafting items is the only way to progress through the stages. Plans will appear as one of four colors in the profession window, with a certain chance for a skill up (gaining a point):

  • Orange: Will always skill up. When indicated (with a number and up arrow to the right of the recipe name), recipe will skill up by the shown number for each craft.
  • Yellow: Will almost always skill up.
  • Green: Will sometimes skill up.
  • Grey: Will never skill up.

As engineering skill increases, plans will eventually change from orange to yellow, yellow to green and green to grey. Only by finding higher skill schematics can one continue to progress through the profession. Approximately every 5-10 points, new schematics will become available to learn from the trainers. Alternatively, schematics can be looted from corpses, given as quest rewards, or can be purchased either from vendors or from the auction house. All schematics have a requisite engineering skill to be able to be learned and crafted. Additionally, some schematics cannot be gotten until you have a certain reputation standing with a given faction.

Schematics usually require the use of some additional item, which will need to be in your inventory or equipped. Each schematic will show what it requires. This may include:

You may also be required to use an anvil. Anvils can be found throughout the world, particularly in civilized areas such as cities near a forge or Blacksmithing Trainers. At high level, engineers can create their own Thermal Anvils to use or sell.

Companion Skills[]

By far the best option for your second primary profession is mining. The vast majority of the materials you need for Engineering recipes are acquired through mining. The only other profession that might be mildly beneficial is skinning, since a small number of engineering recipes use leather.

Note: If you have an alt with the Mining profession (such as a blacksmith), and that character can pass materials to your engineer, then the jewelcrafting profession would be a good secondary profession. This is primarily because most engineering items only require skill in engineering and are not level dependent, and the engineering skill can be rapidly advanced by making blasting powder, dynamite, and bombs for personal use. Thus, low-level characters can equip themselves with powerful engineering gear, making leveling faster and easier. This also gives such engineers a distinct advantage in low level battlegrounds (such as Warsong Gulch) as they will be far better equipped than comparable non-engineers. Jewelcrafting can then be used with the same basic materials to craft early rings, amulets, and trinkets - making the character with this combination even more powerful. In addition, jewelcrafting allows Inv misc gem bloodgem 01 [Prospecting] raw minerals to produce gems, which are used quite extensively in engineering schematics.

Specialization[]

Engineering has the opportunity to specialize in two fields. At skill level 200 an engineer can choose to specialize in Gnomish or Goblin Engineering. The main difference between both sides is the location of their respective teleporters and the ability of their trinkets. Some items require a specific specialization to use, while other items are crafted by one specialization but are usable by any engineer. Fortunately, most recipes that are crafted by one Specialization can be used by both.

Some specialization recipe comparisons[]

Gnomish Engineering Goblin Engineering
Transporters

Recipe

Trinkets

Explosives

Headgear

Mount

Transporters

Recipe

Trinkets

Explosives

Headgear

Mount

For more information, read the respective pages for Gnomish and Goblin Engineering.

All in all, both Engineering disciplines are useful and fun. Some believe various Engineering gadgets, such as the Inv gizmo rocketlauncher [Goblin Rocket Launcher] or Inv misc enggizmos 06 [Gnomish Poultryizer], are excellent for use in PvP given their crowd control potential and stamina boost. That being said, many people don't take Engineering until they reach max level and have ample gold saved because of the fairly steep expense involved in leveling it.

Switching specializations[]

You can drop your current specialization by opening the profession tab in your spellbook and unlearning Gnomish/Goblin Engineering. Learn another specialization from the engineering trainer in either Orgrimmar or Stormwind:

Also of note:

  • You don't need to complete the quests associated with your new spec.
  • You can only create items from the specialization you currently have. You'll lose specialization specific recipes for the other faction unless you switch back. This only lets you use the recipes for one faction at a time depending on your specialization.

Engineer-Only Benefits[]

Enchantments[]

Main article: Tinker (engineering)

Engineer enchantments, also known as tinkers, are unique gear enchantments that may be used alongside regular enchantments. Glove enchants generally provide a throughput bonus and do not have any backfire effects. Belt enchants are utility-based and can sometimes backfire for adverse effects, or simply fizzle out.

Cogwheels[]

Main article: Cogwheel

Engineers are able to trade crafted goods for cogwheels that can only be placed into certain engineering crafted helms.

Mounts[]

Engineers are able to create two engineer-only mounts, in addition to the Inv misc key 14 [Mekgineer's Chopper] / Inv misc key 06 [Mechano-Hog] which is BoE and can be often be sold for a profit.

The Ability mount gyrocoptor [Flying Machine] and the Ability mount gyrocoptorelite [Turbo-Charged Flying Machine] have a minimum engineering skill requirement to learn and fly, and are made with engineering. Keep in mind that if you drop engineering after making the mounts, they will no longer be usable unless you pick up engineering again and get it to the mount's required engineering skill level.

Teleports[]

Engineers can make several teleportation devices that require engineering skill to operate. Which teleportation devices you can craft depend on your specialization.

Goggles[]

Engineers can craft goggles as head-slot items. These often have unique looks and offer decent stats for their level.

Guns[]

An engineer can make several different types of Guns, however some are Bind on Pickup and bind to the engineer - thus making them for all intents and purposes an Engineering-only weapon. Some of these guns, like the Inv weapon rifle 08 [Mark "S" Boomstick], require expensive mats to create. This should be kept in mind if your engineer is a class that cannot use guns, or before crafting any gun to send to an alt which can use guns.

Miscellaneous Devices[]

Engineers specialize in items only they can use, with effects ranging from novelty to highly practical. Some engineer-only devices include:

In Warcraft RPG[]

Icon-RPG This section contains information from the Warcraft RPG which is considered non-canon.

Engineers in Warcraft[]

See also[]

Patch changes[]

  • Battle for Azeroth Patch 8.0.1 (2018-07-17): Each expansion now has a separate profession skill bar, with smaller caps for each expansion, instead of one gigantic profession skill bar for all expansions put together
  • Cataclysm Patch 4.3.0 (2011-11-29): Engineering specialization now easier to change.
  • Cataclysm Patch 4.0.3a (2010-11-23): New recipes added for Cataclysm, including epic goggles and more engineer-only enchantments.
  • Cataclysm Patch 4.0.1 (2010-10-12): The old engineer-only enchants have no longer stats, but can be used alongside with general enchants simultaneously. Several enchants moved to the belt or glove slot. Arrow and Bullet recipes removed.
  • Wrath-Logo-Small Patch 3.0.2 (2008-10-14): New engineering recipes added including engineer-only enchantments, Alliance Inv misc key 14 [Mekgineer's Chopper] and Horde Inv misc key 06 [Mechano-Hog], Engineer-only trinkets and a new set of engineering helmets. See Engineering recipes for full list. These helmets are item level 200, equivalent to gear dropped in the 10-man raids available with this expansion's release, but easily replaced by later content.
  • Bc icon Patch 2.4.0 (2008-03-25): Every epic helm may now benefit from upgrades. The engineering schematics drop from Sunwell Plateau trash mobs and do not BoP.
  • Bc icon Patch 2.3.0 (2007-11-13):
Potions injectors (Healing, Mana) no longer require Engineering skill to use.
Flying Machine mounts added, the Ability mount gyrocoptor [Flying Machine] and Ability mount gyrocoptorelite [Turbo-Charged Flying Machine]. Engineering skill is required for them to be used.
Inv crate 03 [Adamantite Arrow Maker] and Inv crate 04 [Adamantite Shell Machine], which make 5 charge devices that create stacks of arrows or bullets (respectively).
Inv misc enggizmos 01 [Field Repair Bot 110G], much like the Inv egg 05 [Field Repair Bot 74A], but allowing cheaper repairs.
Source and full notes: Professions section of Patch 2.3 article.
Among other changes, Blizzard added Inv misc enggizmos 31 [Frost Grenade], an Epic Gun - Inv weapon rifle 13 [Gyro-Balanced Khorium Destroyer] and 11 Epic Helm Schematics comparable to Tier 5 which can be equipped at level 62. With these adjustments, the Profession was reborn into an attractive alternative.
  • Test-inline Patch 0.6 (2004-04-13):
    • New recipes added including rocket boots and jumper cables.
    • Many recipes now require more cloth and less leather.

References[]

External links[]

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