How to read these guides
Each guide splits the profession into TBC skill brackets: 1-75, 75-150, 150-225, 225-300 and 300-375. Crafting professions focus on material groups and recipe choices, while gathering professions focus on zone routes and skill requirements. Always compare exact craft counts with the prices on your own realm.
1-75 Apprentice
Make the early stone and copper crafts as cheaply as possible.
- Keep Rough/Coarse Stone on hand, because part of the opening runs through stones.
- Mining makes this bracket almost free if you farm as you go.
75-150 Journeyman
Move into coarse stone, bronze and iron.
- Bronze requires the Copper + Tin chain, so buying only one ore is not enough.
- If a weapon craft is expensive, switch to an armor or utility route.
150-225 Expert
Iron, steel and mithril begin to define the cost.
- Mithril is often the first major price spike.
- Check trainer stages early so a craft does not turn green halfway through your material stack.
225-300 Artisan
After Mithril, Thorium takes the profession to the Classic cap.
- This bracket can consume a lot of Thorium, so compare bar and ore prices.
- If your goal is a TBC specialization, do not spend expensive special materials on unnecessary filler crafts.
300-375 Master / Outland
Fel Iron carries the start, while Adamantite and Primals raise the late stretch.
- 350+ may require recipes that are expensive or tied to your specialization choice.
- Think through Armorsmith/Weaponsmith and any weapon subspecialization before investing in the most expensive materials.