- Author: Luxrah
- Date: April 14, 2024
- Updated: December 8, 2024
- Expansion: WoW Classic
Players with a high enough Engineering skill in WoW Classic are able to specialize in either Gnomish Engineering or Goblin Engineering. These specializations allow you to craft some powerful schematics, but you can only have one specialization at a time.
In this guide we’ll go over the differences between the two specializations, how you can learn them, how to renew your membership card, and how to change specializations.
Engineering Specializations in Season of Discovery
Season of Discovery makes Engineering a lot more flexible by allowing players to learn most recipes from both specializations without having to go through the process of switching. To do so, you’ll need to complete a new chain of quests that was added to the game for this season. Note that the only recipes you’ll be able to learn are the ones that have “Gnomish” or “Goblin” in the name. So if you want both of the Engineering pets, or you want to change your portal trinket, you’ll have to change specializations the old-fashioned way.
Once you’ve learned your specialization, head to The Shimmering Flats in Thousand Needles to start a new quest:
- Gnomish Engineers: Gnomish Solutions, offered by Fizzbizz Coppercoil (77.0, 77.2)
- Goblin Engineers: Goblin Solutions, offered by Maximillian “The Greaser” (79.8, 77.2)
Completing this quest chain will allow you to complete the quest Hush Money/Hush Money once per week, which awards an Engineering Exchange Ticket that can be used to purchase one of the opposite specialization recipes from the same NPC who gave you the quests.
Gnomish vs. Goblin Engineering
Broadly speaking, you should take Gnomish Engineering if you are more interested in gadgets and Goblin Engineering if you want to blow things up. Some of the items that can be made with one specialization can be purchased and used by other Engineers without needing to have the specialization. Others are Bind-on-Pickup or require the associated specialization to use.
There are only three items that actually require a specialization in order to use them:
- Dimensional Ripper – Everlook (Goblin)
- Ultrasafe Transporter: Gadgetzan (Gnomish)
- World Enlarger (Gnomish)
Bind-on-Pickup items are marked (BoP) below so you can see what you will be able to get with your specialization.
There are a couple of schematics that sound like they should require a specialization, but don’t. Goblin Jumper Cables/Goblin Jumper Cables XL and Gnomish Cloaking Device can be made by any Engineer.
Type | Gnome Exclusives | Goblin Exclusives |
---|---|---|
Head | ||
Feet | ||
Waist | – | |
Trinket | ||
Gadget | ||
Explosive | – | |
Pet | Lil’ Smoky (BoP) | Pet Bombling (BoP) |
Recipe |
Learning Gnomish Engineering
To learn Gnomish Engineering, you’ll need to visit one of the following Engineering trainers to pick up the Gnome Engineering/ Gnome Engineering quest:
- Tinkerwiz at Ratchet in The Barrens (62.7, 36.3)
- Lilliam Sparkspindle at the Dwarven District in Stormwind City (54.8, 7.6)
- Springspindle Fizzlegear at Tinker Town in Ironforge (68.5, 43.5)
- Graham Van Talen at the Rogues’ Quarter in Undercity (75.6, 74.6)
The quest will send you to another NPC, depending on your faction:
- Tinkmaster Overspark at Tinker Town in Ironforge (69.6, 50.3)
- Oglethorpe Obnoticus at Booty Bay in Stranglethorn Vale (28.4, 76.4)
This NPC will give you the quest The Pledge of Secrecy/ The Pledge of Secrecy, requiring you to right-click on a Pledge item in your inventory and turn it in.
When you turn in the signed Pledge, the same NPC will give you the quest Show Your Work/ Show Your Work. This quest requires turning in the following items to get your Gnome Engineer Membership Card:
6x Mithril Tube
- Taught by:
- Springspindle Fizzlegear at Tinker Town in Ironforge (68.5, 43.5)
- Roxxik at the Valley of Honor in Orgrimmar (76.2, 25.2)
- Buzzek Bracketswing at Gadgetzan in Tanaris (52.3, 27.7)
- Materials:
- Mithril Bar x18
1x Accurate Scope
- Schematic: Accurate Scope is sold by Mazk Snipeshot in Stranglethorn Vale
- Materials:
- Jade x1
- Citrine x1
- Bronze Tube x1
- (Bronze Bar x2)
- (Weak Flux x1)
2x Advanced Target Dummy
- Taught by:
- Springspindle Fizzlegear at Tinker Town in Ironforge (68.5, 43.5)
- Roxxik at the Valley of Honor in Orgrimmar (76.2, 25.2)
- Buzzek Bracketswing at Gadgetzan in Tanaris (52.3, 27.7)
- Materials:
- Heavy Leather x8
- Bronze Framework x2
- (Medium Leather x2)
- (Wool Cloth x2)
- (Bronze Bar x4)
- Iron Strut x2
- (Iron Bar x4)
- Gyrochronatom x2
- (Iron Bar x2)
- (Gold Power Core x2)
- (Gold Bar x2)
Learning Goblin Engineering
To learn Goblin Engineering, you’ll need to visit one of the following Engineering trainers to pick up the Goblin Engineering quest:
- Tinkerwiz at Ratchet in The Barrens (62.7, 36.3)
- Lilliam Sparkspindle at the Dwarven District in Stormwind City (54.8, 7.6)
- Springspindle Fizzlegear at Tinker Town in Ironforge (68.5, 43.5)
- Graham Van Talen at the Rogues’ Quarter in Undercity (75.6, 74.6)
The quest will send you to Nixx Sprocketspring at Gadgetzan in Tanaris (52.5, 27.3). He’ll give you the quest The Pledge of Secrecy, requiring you to right-click on a Pledge item in your inventory and turn it in.
When you turn in the signed Pledge, the same NPC will give you the quest Show Your Work. This quest requires turning in the following items to get your Goblin Engineer Membership Card:
20x Big Iron Bomb
- Taught by:
- Springspindle Fizzlegear at Tinker Town in Ironforge (68.5, 43.5)
- Roxxik at the Valley of Honor in Orgrimmar (76.2, 25.2)
- Buzzek Bracketswing at Gadgetzan in Tanaris (52.3, 27.7)
- Materials:
- Iron Bar x60
- Heavy Blasting Powder x60
- (Heavy Stone x60)
- Silver Contact x20
- (Silver Bar x20)
20x Solid Dynamite
- Taught by:
- Springspindle Fizzlegear at Tinker Town in Ironforge (68.5, 43.5)
- Roxxik at the Valley of Honor in Orgrimmar (76.2, 25.2)
- Buzzek Bracketswing at Gadgetzan in Tanaris (52.3, 27.7)
- Materials:
- Silk Cloth x20
- Solid Blasting Powder x20
- (Solid Stone x40)
5x Explosive Sheep
- Taught by any Engineering trainer
- Materials:
- Wool Cloth x10
- Whirring Bronze Gizmo x5
- (Wool Cloth x5)
- (Bronze Bar x10)
- Heavy Blasting Powder x10
- (Heavy Stone x10)
- Bronze Framework x5
- (Medium Leather x5)
- (Wool Cloth x5)
- (Bronze Bar x10)
Renewing Your Membership Card
Every two weeks, you’ll need to renew your membership card if you want to continue crafting the schematics for your specialization. This requires completing a quest which simply involves paying your trainer 2 gold. Doing this will also get you a Renewal Gift which has a chance to contain schematics for your specialization’s exclusive pet.
Gnome Engineer Membership Card Renewal
To renew your Gnome Engineer Membership Card, visit either of these trainers to complete the Membership Card Renewal quest:
- Oglethorpe Obnoticus at Booty Bay in Stranglethorn Vale (28.2, 76.2)
- Tinkmaster Overspark at Tinker Town in Ironforge (69.8, 50.2)
You’ll be rewarded with a Gnome Engineer’s Renewal Gift which can contain any of the following items:
- Mithril Casing
- Mithril Tube
- Unstable Trigger
- Schematic: Catseye Ultra Goggles
- Schematic: Lil’ Smoky
- Schematic: Parachute Cloak
Goblin Engineer Membership Card Renewal
To renew a Goblin Engineer Membership Card, visit either of these trainers to complete the Membership Card Renewal quest:
- Nixx Sprocketspring at Gadgetzan in Tanaris (52.4, 27.2)
- Vazario Linkgrease at Ratchet in The Barrens (62.6, 36.2)
You’ll be rewarded with a Goblin Engineer’s Renewal Gift which can contain any of the following items:
- Big Iron Bomb
- Hi-Explosive Bomb
- Mithril Frag Bomb
- Schematic: Goblin Land Mine
- Schematic: Large Seaforium Charge
- Schematic: Pet Bombling
How to Change Engineering Specializations
In Vanilla WoW, there is only one way to change your Engineering specialization, and that’s by dropping the profession and leveling it again from scratch. This is obviously very expensive and time consuming to do, but it will allow you to craft and use almost all of the exclusive items for both specializations.
To drop Engineering, open the Skills tab in your character window and click on the crossed-out circle beside your Engineering skill. You will lose ALL of your current skill and ALL of your recipes, so be sure that you want to do this before you confirm!
Now you’ll have to level Engineering again from scratch. When you reach 200 skill level and want to pick up the other specialization, head to Steamwheedle Port in Tanaris and look for a small house north of town (65.4, 18.6). Inside you’ll find a book called Soothsaying for Dummies on a table. Interact with this book to get your new specialization. You won’t have to complete either of the quests like you did the first time around.
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