Gold or Gear? Picking the Right Leatherworking “Spec” (Without Regretting Your Life Choices)

Leatherworking is one of those professions that looks simple on paper “I make pants!” and then you realize your one choice can either print gold or quietly drain your will to live while you stare at unsold bracers on the Auction House.

And the rude part? The “right” answer changes depending on what version of WoW you’re playing. What’s genius in Classic can be pointless in TBC, and modern WoW is basically “profession talent trees: the sequel.”

So let’s make this easy: are you here to make gold, or are you here to make gear for yourself? Because that’s the whole game.

Classic Leatherworking: The Permanent Decision (Cue Dramatic Music)

In Classic, at 225 skill, you pick one specialization:

• Tribal
• Elemental
• Dragonscale

And yes, it’s basically permanent. If you want to switch later, you’re doing the whole “unlearn Leatherworking and re-level it from scratch” thing. Which is like deciding you don’t like your haircut… so you shave your head and start over.

Also important: the specialty crafts are Bind on Equip. So in Classic, you’re mostly choosing what you’re going to sell, not what you’ll wear.

My Classic money pick: Tribal (most of the time)

If you want the “default, safest, sells to the most people” answer, it’s Tribal.

Why? Because the audience is huge:

• Devilsaur stuff sells to physical DPS (hello, Rogues)
• Wolfshead Helm is basically a Druid rite of passage
• Hide of the Wild appeals to healers

It hits a big chunk of your server. More buyers = more consistent gold. Simple.

When I wouldn’t pick Tribal

Elemental can be great if you’re playing the long game and want to cash in when resistance gear becomes the hot new thing (Stormshroud demand can spike during certain raid phases Naxx is the classic example).

Dragonscale is my “Tribal is a crowded, undercutty mess” pick. The market is smaller (often Hunters/Shamans), but you may actually be able to breathe and charge real prices instead of getting undercut by 7 copper every 14 seconds.

“Try before you commit” (yes, you can)

Here’s the sneaky thing: you can do most of the specialization questline and snag patterns before you do the final quest that truly locks you in (the one that commits you don’t click it on autopilot while watching YouTube).

Before you commit, do a quick Auction House reality check:

• Are the key crafts already flooding the AH? If there are 19 of the same item with tiny price gaps, that’s a red flag for your sanity.
• Are mats pricey but finished goods cheap? That’s margin death. You’ll craft for “experience” and vibes (and neither pays for your mount).
• If you have sale rate data from an addon: fast-ish sales with decent prices beats “high price that never moves.”

If the market looks like a knife fight in a phone booth… maybe don’t jump into that booth.

Classic quick recap:

• Want broad, steady gold? Tribal
• Want to ride resistance phase demand spikes? Elemental
• Want a smaller market with less competition? Dragonscale

TBC: Now Your Class Actually Matters (Because BoP Exists)

In TBC, specializations still exist… but the whole vibe changes because some of the big ticket crafts are Bind on Pickup.

Meaning: you’re not just choosing what you can sell you’re choosing what you can make for your own character.

Pick by armor goal (not by “what sounds cool”)

Here’s the clean version:

• Tribal: clutch for Resto/Balance Druids (Windhawk set)
• Elemental: great for Rogues / Feral Druids / Hunters chasing big Agility (Primalstrike)
• Dragonscale: the move for Enhance/Elemental Shamans (Ebon Netherscale / Netherstrike mail sets)

If you’re a Shaman and you pick Tribal because “Devilsaur in Classic was lit”… I mean, I get it. But you’re going to be staring at the wrong mailbox set like it betrayed you personally.

The best part: switching isn’t a tragedy anymore

Unlike Classic, TBC lets you switch specializations for a fee (it’s not free, but it’s also not “re-level the entire profession” levels of pain). You unlearn at a trainer, pay the cost, and you can finish the process with “Soothsaying for Dummies” in Steamwheedle Port.

So if you choose wrong in TBC: annoying, yes. Ruin your weekend, no.

TBC checklist (the one you actually need):

1. What are you making leather caster, leather agility, or mail?
2. Pick the spec that matches your set.
3. If you guessed wrong, pay to switch and grab the book in Steamwheedle Port.

Done.

The War Within: It’s Talent Trees Now (AKA “Spend Points, Feel Feelings”)

Modern Leatherworking doesn’t do the old “pick one spec forever” thing. Instead, you invest Knowledge Points into profession talent trees and map out best profession combos.

Early choices matter because Knowledge is limited week to week… but you’re not permanently doomed. You can respec for gold if you want to pivot later.

The two bottlenecks you need to understand (or you’ll get mad for no reason)

• Spark of Omen (time gated): this is what throttles epic armor crafting roughly “one big craft every couple weeks” territory.
• Concentration (regenerates over time): this soft limits how often you can push higher quality repeatable crafts.

So: epics are gated by Sparks. Repeatables are gated by Concentration + mats.

The Leatherworking trees (in human terms)

• Luxurious Leathers: leather armor (Rogue/Monk/Druid/DH)
• Concrete Chitin: mail armor (Hunter/Shaman/Evoker)
• Flawless Fortes: the “steady gold” corner leg enchants, reagents, tools, embellishments
• Learned Leatherworker: general stats/bonuses that make everything better once you know your direction

Where I’d put my first points (based on your goal)

If you’re gold first: start in Flawless Fortes. This is where you’re more likely to find consistent demand that isn’t chained to Sparks. If you only do one smart thing early, make it this.

If you’re gear first: go straight into Luxurious Leathers or Concrete Chitin depending on what your character wears. Just understand you’re Spark limited, so don’t expect to crank out epics like it’s a bake sale.

And yes, you can do a hybrid approach, but…

Mistakes That Waste Time (Ask Me How I Know)

1) Spreading points across both armor trees

Do not half invest in Luxurious Leathers and Concrete Chitin unless you truly craft for multiple characters/markets.

Splitting early Knowledge points is like watering two plants with one tablespoon of water and acting shocked when both look sad.

2) Over investing in armor crafting when Sparks are the real cap

Once you’ve got what you need to craft your main pieces, dumping a mountain of extra points into the armor tree won’t magically create more Sparks. Your output is still time gated.

3) Classic pick confusion: “I’ll make my own gear!”

In Classic, the classic mistake is leather wearers picking Dragonscale and then realizing, too late, that they’re now a proud artisan of… mail. For other people. Congrats on your new side hustle.

Season of Discovery (SoD): The Chill Option

If you’re playing Season of Discovery, it’s refreshingly simple: do the quests and learn all the specializations. No melodrama. No “choose your forever path.” A rare WoW kindness.

So… Which One Should You Choose?

Here’s the decision in plain language:

• Classic: pick based on what sells on your server
  • Tribal = safest gold for most people
  • Elemental = niche spikes (often resistance driven)
  • Dragonscale = smaller market, sometimes better margins if Tribal is overcrowded

  And for the love of your future self, peek at the AH before you do the final lock in quest.

• TBC: pick based on your class/gear needs because BoP changes the entire point
• The War Within: pick based on gold vs gear
  • Gold first: Flawless Fortes early
  • Gear first: your armor tree (but remember Sparks are the leash)

If you tell me what version you’re on and what class/spec you’re playing, I can give you the “stop overthinking it, pick this” answer. But honestly? If you just avoid the big mistakes (permanent Classic regret, wrong TBC armor type, splitting modern Knowledge points), you’re already ahead of like… half the server.