Blacksmiths take bars of metal from miners and work them into finely crafted arms and armor. There are many unique weapons and other armaments that cannot be found on any of the vendors or monsters in the game, but can only be created by blacksmiths. Blacksmiths can create weapons, mail armor for Paladins or Warriors, and trade items. Blacksmiths can construct special sharpening stones that can be used to temporarily improve weapon damage. They can also create several items that are used as ingredients for other Profession recipes, such as Enchanting.

If you plan on being a blacksmith, you should probably already be a miner. Miners collect ore and smelt ore into bars to create the majority of blacksmithing items. Blacksmith recipes often include jewels, which are found in a variety of places. Typically, most blacksmiths buy or are given rare jewels from other players. Some blacksmithing recipes require leather, which you will need to buy from a skinner.

Blacksmithing is great for Paladins or Warriors, who can use the skill to create their own equipment. It is also good for making money by selling weapons and armor to the classes that can use them.

Becoming a Blacksmith

Specialization

Information

• There are hidden trainers throughout the world who can teach you new and special recipes.
• You can also buy new recipes from other players or find them as drops from monsters.
• There are special quests specifically for blacksmiths.
• There are no recipes on the trainer past skill 250. You will need to do quests or find drops to get those recipes.
• Blacksmiths can open locks by creating and using Skeleton Keys.
• There are blacksmithing recipes available to seasoned blacksmiths via a series of turn-in quests.
• There are also armorsmithing recipes that are available to master armorsmiths. All 3 recipes are gained via quest.
• Additional Blacksmithing recipes can be found in encoded messages found on the members of the Twilight's Hammer in Silithus.
  

Will you be able to randomly find items, and if so, will these items be classified as in Diablo II (Rare, Unique, etc.)?
Monsters will have treasure that characters can loot, but these will be drawn randomly from a specific item class for that monster type. We do not expect to have the same vast amount of random items as in the Diablo series, but we will have items that are rare and even some that could be truly unique by limiting them to only one per server.

Can you give any comparisons, or lack of, between the drop system in World of Warcraft and Diablo II?
Like Diablo II, World of Warcraft supports a form of random item generation. Unique items can be created by the system, such as "Sword of Lifestealing" or "Breastplate of Stamina." The game will take the base item, such as a sword, and randomly combine it with a modifier, such as lifestealing.

Will there be ranged weapons? Can Dwarves use Guns?
Yes. Different classes can use a variety of ranged weapons, such as bows, crossbows, and yes, even Dwarven muskets.

Besides bows and rifles, what other types of ranged weapons can we expect?
Throwing axes, throwing daggers, wands and crossbows to name a few.

Can some items only be used or worn by specific classes?
Yes.

Will all characters be able to use all weapons?
No.

Will there be ways to make weapons glow or have cool effects in World of Warcraft like in Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos?
Yes. There will be many ways to modify your weapons which will change the way your weapon appears. As an example, you might add a fire enchantment that would make your sword glow red and do fire damage.

Will there be alcohol in World of Warcraft?
Yes. Alcohol will cause some temporary effects such as slurred speech to those that overindulge.

Will there be items available to allow characters (other than Undead) to breathe underwater for durations to exceed 90 seconds?
Yes, including but not limited to: Items found and/or quested for, crafted items, potions and class based spells.

While there aren't any differences in racial visions, will there be ways to modify vision with items?
Yes. As an example, engineers can make spy glasses that will allow your character to see farther.

Quest Loot vs Crafted Items - which is better?
The development team is working very hard to balance this. There will be better items in each. For example, at level 5 you might quest for the "best" boots in the game and the "best" gloves will be crafted. Whereas at level 7 the "best" boots would be crafted and the "best" gloves will be quested for (best meaning better stats for that level/race/class).

Will items crafted in World of Warcraft be more useful to other players than crafted items typically are in other RPGs?
Throughout a player's career as a crafter, there will be certain items that he or she can create which will be the best items at that level. For example, at level 40 the best bracers might come from a player with the blacksmith trade skill, while at level 45, the best bracers might be from a quest. There are also a number of consumable items that can be created by players with trade skills, such as armor patches and sharpening stones: these consumable items can be sold to other players, who can use them to improve their existing armor and items.

Will players be able to use trade skills to recreate the same item over and over as long as they get the right materials?
Yes.

How will the trading interface work?
You must be side-by-side to trade. The interface is designed to be as secure as possible. A similar interface is used to provide a secure system for enchanting and unlocking boxes and so on. This prevents you from having to actually hand over your items to the enchanter, whom you might not fully trust. In World of Warcraft, the enchanter doesn't have to have physical possession of your item to enchant it.

You'll also see some familiar monstrous creatures, such as ogres, gnolls, centaurs, satyrs, murlocs, wildkin, and others, that are inspired by the hostile creeps of Warcraft III. And you'll encounter more spectacular enemies like demons, infernals, dragonspawn, and mighty dragons stalking the dungeons and high-level areas of the world.

The territories and terrain you will be able to explore are vast and varied. In addition to borrowing from some of the most storied locations in Warcraft history, the game also shows off many different kinds of environments, such as the lush forests in Ashenvale and Feralas, the snowy mountains in Dun Morogh, the savannah of the Barrens, the plains of Mulgore, and the deserts of Tanaris. Swamps in Un'Goro Crater, jungles in Stranglethorn Vale, farmland in Elwynn Forest, and even deforested hills in Stonetalon Mountains are some more of the many environmental regions you can explore. Terrain that has been vastly altered by magic and the ravages of war also appear in the game. The razed city of Dalaran, encased in a protective magic shell, is a painful reminder of the devastation of the Reign of Chaos, while the infested Eastern and Western Plaguelands are filled with diseased animals and plantlife, courtesy of the Scourge's plague.

This long list of fascinating terrain doesn't even include the underground environments and dungeons of the world. There are dungeons available for all ranges of mid- to high-level players, and offer many rich quests, rewards, and enemies to encounter in the depths below ground.