The Dragonflight expansion breathed new life intoWorld of Warcraft’s profession system. A new work order system allows crafters to find work and more accurately satisfy the fantasy of working as a master blacksmith or tailor. This system also allowed the developers to create more powerful equipment that any player can access, rather than the best weapons and armor only being accessible to the crafter themselves.
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Perhaps the most exciting change was the introduction of a specialization system that allows each crafter to customize their abilities and fulfill different needs. These changes made every crafting profession more exciting than ever before, though some become rather better than others during the rework ofthis Blizzard classic.
8Inscription
One of the biggest advantages of the new crafting system is how much the professions rely on each other. While Inscription does not create core armor pieces or the most valuable weapons, it produces some critical reagents that are used in high-level crafts for most other professions.
Perhaps its most important role is creating missives that allow you to customize the secondary stats on a piece of crafted gear. For anyone trying to optimize their character, this is a must-have for every craft. It’s very specialized, however, meaning that it may not be the strictest priority for all players.
7Enchanting
Every character needs Enchantments to get the most out of their gear, so Enchanters will always have a home in World of Warcraft. That said, enchanting’s one downside compared to other crafting professions is its limited engagement with the work order system.
Aside from a few profession gear pieces, Enchantment largely functions the same as it has in the past, providing nearly all its value through the auction house and trade chat. At least the new enchantments for profession gear add some new stats and reasons for players to seek out an enchanter.
6Leatherworking
Leatherworking continues to provide its usual value of creating drums and armor kits, but it is also one of the more valuable professions for providing everyone else with their profession gear. The profession is ideal for Hunters, as it not only provides their armor but a strong bow as well.
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While the gear itself is a bit limited and the weapons are highly specialized, Leatherworking got a big boost in Dragonflight, since nearly everyone will be looking to gear up a Dracthyr Evoker at some point in the expansion. For its specific purpose, Leatherworking is hugely useful.
5Tailoring
Despite being limited solely to the creation of cloth armor, tailoring has a surprising amount of value in Dragonflight. Not only are the timed Azureweave and Chronocloth crafts used to create powerful armor with a set bonus, but bags are also extremely valuable this time around.
The game has added a slot for a special reagent bag that is important for any crafter or gatherer to have, given the complexity of the new crafting system. Several high-value pieces of profession gear also come from tailoring.
4Blacksmithing
Not only do blacksmiths create armor for every plate-wearing class and a number of strong profession gear pieces, they also have access to weapons that can be used by almost every class and specialization in the game. Blacksmiths also get access to repair hammers, which can save a lot of gold on repair costs over the lifetime of the expansion.
Blacksmithing is especially valuable for tanks, who can not only create all of their armor and weapons here but also a powerful shield:One of the more difficult gear pieces to farm for. In short, blacksmiths are as valuable in World of Warcraft as they are in a range of other RPGs, helping the player todevelop their character into a true powerhouse.
3Engineering
In many expansions, engineering has been an odd side project that struggled to interact with the broader community. In Dragonflight, everyone needs engineers. They provide some of the best profession gear for a variety of classes, but perhaps their biggest contribution is creating the Ghostbusters-esque items that allow you to capture an elemental soul.
These are crafting reagents required for some of the strongest pieces in the system. As ever, engineers also have access to unique and powerful headpieces, in the form of those unique goggles.
2Jewelcrafting
Continuing its standard role, Jewelcrafting provides the gems that enhance the best pieces of gear found in raids and dungeons. With the launch of Dragonflight, Jewelcrafting became one of the best professions anyone could have, due to the introduction of the Elemental Lariat.
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This one neck piece was the best-in-slot item for nearly every class on launch and remains a high-value piece, particularly for anyone trying to gear up a new character. Add in some unique toys and powerful rings, and Jewelcrafting has been one of the biggest winners of the expansion.
Alchemy will always be near the top of the profession leaderboard, due to the mandatory nature of flasks and potions for raiding and PvP. Many other professions’ most valuable offerings are one-time use, or only necessary when it comes time to replace a piece of gear, but alchemists create a variety of consumables that have to be re-purchased before every major activity in the game.
Being an alchemist not only makes money but actively saves money, by increasing the length of time on flasks. It’s an essential profession all around, and you’ll be glad of its support when facingthe game’s trickiest foes.
