World of Warcraft: Forever launches on November 4, and Leatherworking got more new recipes than any other profession in the datamined counts, but the leveling itself changed in one simple way: nearly every recipe between skill 95 and 330 goes grey 25 points earlier than in Classic. This WoW Forever leatherworking leveling guide is the cheapest 1-300 route we could build from the beta client’s skill-up data. It reaches 225 with about 210 Light, 270 Medium, 210 Heavy and 300 Thick Leather, using trainer recipes only.
How solid this is: every skill threshold comes from SeeMeta’s Forever Leatherworking table, and we checked each recipe on the route against the beta client’s skill data (build 1.60.1.70338): all match. Skill 1 to 225 can be tested in the beta, and WoW-Professions’ beta-tested route confirms the learn levels for all but one of our steps to 225. Skill 225 to 300 is untested everywhere, because Artisan needs character level 35 and the beta stops at 30. Craft counts are our estimates from Classic’s skill-up formula.
Quick Answer: Leatherworking 1-300 in WoW Forever
- Route to 225: Light Leather from Ruined Leather Scraps to 30 (plus one Camp Tent at 20), Cured Light Hide to 55, Embossed Leather Gloves to 75, Medium Leather to 80, Cured Medium Hide to 90, Fine Leather Belt to 100, Dark Leather Belt to 125, Heavy Leather to 130, Cured Heavy Hide to 140, Hillman’s Leather Gloves to 155, Barbaric Shoulders to 165, Guardian Gloves to 195, Nightscape Headband to 210, Nightscape Pants to 225.
- Leather to 225: 95 Ruined Leather Scraps, 211 Light, 271 Medium, 208 Heavy and 302 Thick Leather, plus 26 Light, 25 Medium and 44 Heavy Hides. From 225 to 300, about 670 Rugged Leather on paper.
- Cost, our estimate: about 10 gold of salt, thread and dye from vendors to 225, plus 55 silver for the first three ranks. Even at vendor sell prices the leather to 225 is worth about 15 gold, and the auction house will charge a multiple of that in launch week.
- Gates: Journeyman at skill 50 and level 10, Expert at 125 and level 20 (Darnassus or Thunder Bluff only), Artisan at 200 and level 35 (Aerie Peak or Camp Mojache only).
- The catch: Nightscape Pants at 210 are only taught by the two Artisan trainers, and after 235 every cheap skill-up needs a pattern whose Forever source nobody has found yet.
Do Leatherworking Recipes Go Grey Earlier in WoW Forever?
Yes, by 25 points for almost everything you level with. We compared the 235 original Leatherworking recipes that exist in both the Forever beta client and the Classic Era client (build 1.15.9): 198 go grey earlier in Forever, 168 of them by 20 to 45 points, and 158 by exactly 25. WoW-Professions’ claim of “about 25 points” holds.
| Grey in Classic at | Recipes | How much earlier in Forever | Examples (Classic grey, Forever grey) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 90 or lower | 11 | 0 to 5 points | Light Armor Kit 60, 60; Cured Light Hide 75, 70 |
| 95 to 150 | 25 | Mostly 25 | Medium Leather 110, 85; Fine Leather Belt 140, 115 |
| 155 to 200 | 35 | Mostly 25 | Heavy Armor Kit 190, 165; Guardian Pants 200, 175 |
| 205 to 260 | 42 | All 25 | Guardian Gloves 230, 205; Nightscape Headband 245, 220 |
| 265 to 330 | 64 | 25 for 62 of them | Nightscape Pants 270, 245; Wicked Leather Headband 320, 295 |
| 335 and higher | 58 | 0 to 25, half unchanged | Onyxia Scale Cloak and the other raid recipes |
The yellow threshold moved by the same amount for all 235 recipes, and for 136 of the 149 patterns in both clients the skill requirement dropped by exactly the grey shift too. Trainer learn levels aren’t in the client, but every recipe WoW-Professions’ testers learned fits that rule: Cured Light Hide at 30 (Classic 35), Medium Leather at 75 (100), Heavy Leather at 125 (150), Guardian Gloves at 165 (190). We use it for the two steps nobody has tested.
What it means for leather: you need every tier about 25 points sooner. Heavy Leather starts at 125 instead of 150 and Rugged Leather at 225 instead of 250. We ran a standard Classic route through Classic’s thresholds with the same formula and compared it with ours:
| Leather | Standard Classic route, 1-300 | Our Forever route, 1-300 |
|---|---|---|
| Light Leather | 218 | 211 |
| Medium Leather | 40 | 271 |
| Heavy Leather | 258 | 208 |
| Thick Leather | 408 | 302 |
| Rugged Leather | 447 | 673 (606 of it for 235-300, on patterns of unknown source) |
| Hides | 75 | 95 |
Rugged Leather is the real change: 75 points of Rugged recipes instead of 50 means about 50% more Rugged Leather. Thick Leather goes down because its stretch shrinks to 195-225. The Medium Leather gap is our choice of Hillman’s Leather Gloves at 140; Heavy Armor Kits work there too and trade 244 Medium for about 92 Heavy Leather.
WoW Forever Leatherworking Trainers and Rank Requirements
Every capital has Apprentice and Journeyman leatherworking trainers in WoW Forever, but Expert is only taught in Darnassus and Thunder Bluff and Artisan only in Aerie Peak (The Hinterlands) and Camp Mojache (Feralas), according to Zockify’s beta trainer data. Rank gates are from Icy Veins’ beta table.
| Rank | Skill cap | Requirement | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apprentice | 75 | Character level 5 (Icy Veins; WoW-Professions saw no level check in the beta) | 10 copper |
| Journeyman | 150 | Skill 50, level 10 | 5 silver |
| Expert | 225 | Skill 125, level 20 | 50 silver (WoW-Professions) |
| Artisan | 300 | Skill 200, level 35 | 4 gold 50 silver |
The other three costs are wow.gg’s Forever values for Alchemy; we expect Leatherworking to match. Reaching 150, 225 and 300 each earns one account-wide point for the WoW Forever Legacy System, whose Working Overtime perk raises skill-up chances.
| # | Where | Trainers (rank, coordinates) | Faction |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Stormwind, near Old Town | Randal Worth (Apprentice, 72.1, 62.9), Simon Tanner (Journeyman, 71.7, 63.0) | Alliance |
| 2 | Ironforge, the Great Forge | Gretta Finespindle (Apprentice, 38.8, 32.9), Fimble Finespindle (Journeyman, 40.2, 33.7) | Alliance |
| 3 | Undercity, Rogues’ Quarter | Dan Golthas (Apprentice, 70.9, 58.4), Arthur Moore (Journeyman, 70.2, 57.4) | Horde |
| 4 | Grom’gol, Stranglethorn | Brawn (Journeyman, 31.7, 28.9) | Horde |
| 5 | Aerie Peak, The Hinterlands | Drakk Stonehand (Artisan, 13.4, 43.5) | Alliance |
| 6 | Darnassus, Craftsmen’s Terrace | Darianna (Apprentice, 64.4, 20.9), Faldron (Journeyman, 64.8, 21.8), Telonis (Expert, 64.4, 21.5) | Alliance |
| 7 | Astranaar, Ashenvale | Aayndia Floralwind (Journeyman, 36.0, 52.1) | Alliance |
| 8 | Orgrimmar, the Drag | Kamari (Apprentice, 63.3, 44.8), Karolek (Journeyman, 62.8, 44.2) | Horde |
| 9 | Thunder Bluff | Mak (Apprentice, 42.1, 43.5), Tarn (Journeyman, 42.3, 42.6), Una (Expert, 41.5, 42.6) | Horde |
| 10 | Camp Taurajo, the Barrens | Krulmoo Fullmoon (Journeyman, 44.8, 59.5) | Horde |
| 11 | Ghost Walker Post, Desolace | Narv Hidecrafter (Journeyman, 55.3, 56.3) | Horde |
| 12 | Camp Mojache, Feralas | Hahrana Ironhide (Artisan, 74.4, 43.1) | Horde |
| Dots | Apprentice only | Alliance: Adele Fielder, Elwynn (46.4, 62.1); Nadyia Maneweaver, Teldrassil (41.9, 49.4). Horde: Shelene Rhobart, Tirisfal (65.4, 60.1); Chaw Stronghide, Bloodhoof Village (44.9, 61.5). Both: Waldor, cave above the Wailing Caverns (no coordinates) | Both |
WoW Forever Leatherworking Leveling Route 1-225
The cheapest way to level Leatherworking from 1 to 225 in WoW Forever is a chain of trainer recipes that uses each leather tier while you skin it and turns cheap leather and hides into reagents for the next step. Until a recipe turns yellow, every craft is a point; at grey, it gives none.
| Skill | Recipe (yellow / grey) | Crafts | Materials | Recipe from |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-30 | Light Leather (20 / 40), one Camp Tent at 20 (20 / 25) | 31 + 1 | 95 Ruined Leather Scraps | Known with Leatherworking; tent from the trainer at 20 |
| 30-55 | Cured Light Hide (50 / 70) | 26 | 26 Light Hide, 26 Salt | Trainer, learned by 30 in the beta |
| 55-75 | Embossed Leather Gloves (70 / 100) | 21 | 61 Light Leather, 41 Coarse Thread | Trainer, learned by 55 in the beta |
| 75-80 | Medium Leather (75 / 85) | 7 | 26 Light Leather | Trainer, learned at 75 in the beta |
| 80-90 | Cured Medium Hide (90 / 105) | 10 | 10 Medium Hide, 10 Salt | Trainer, learned by 80 in the beta |
| 90-100 | Fine Leather Belt (85 / 115) | 15 | 89 Light Leather, 30 Coarse Thread | Trainer, learned by 90 in the beta |
| 100-125 | Dark Leather Belt (125 / 150) | 25 | 25 Fine Leather Belts, 25 Cured Medium Hides, 50 Fine Thread, 25 Gray Dye | Trainer, about 100 (our estimate); tested by 115 |
| 125-130 | Heavy Leather (125 / 135) | 7 | 32 Medium Leather | Trainer, learned at 125 in the beta |
| 130-140 | Cured Heavy Hide (135 / 145) | 12 | 12 Heavy Hide, 35 Salt | Trainer, learned by 130 in the beta |
| 140-155 | Hillman’s Leather Gloves (145 / 170) | 17 | 244 Medium Leather, 70 Fine Thread | Trainer, learned by 130 in the beta |
| 155-165 | Barbaric Shoulders (170 / 190) | 10 | 80 Heavy Leather, 10 Cured Heavy Hides, 20 Fine Thread | Trainer, learned by 155 in the beta |
| 165-195 | Guardian Gloves (185 / 205) | 33 | 134 Heavy Leather, 33 Cured Heavy Hides, 33 Silken Thread | Trainer, learned at 165 in the beta |
| 195-210 | Nightscape Headband (200 / 220) | 18 | 92 Thick Leather, 37 Silken Thread | Trainer, learned by 195 in the beta |
| 210-225 | Nightscape Pants (225 / 245) | 15 | 210 Thick Leather, 60 Silken Thread | Artisan trainers only, learned by 210 in the beta |
Four notes on the route:
- Make extra Fine Leather Belts and Cured Medium Hides. The Dark Leather Belts need 25 of each; your 90-100 and 80-90 steps make 15 and 10, so make 10 more belts (60 Light Leather) and cure 15 more Medium Hides on the spot.
- If your trainer won’t teach Dark Leather Belt at 100: make Light Leather Pants from 100 to 115 (about 200 Light Leather and 20 of your Cured Light Hides), the step WoW-Professions tested, then Dark Leather Belts to 125.
- Plan one long trip at 210. WoW-Professions’ testers found that the Expert trainers don’t teach Nightscape Pants, so Alliance players fly to Aerie Peak and Horde players to Camp Mojache. You’ll be back there at level 35 for Artisan.
- Keep the 26 Cured Light Hides from 30-55. They go into the rare leveling gear and the Light Leather Reagent Bag below.
WoW-Professions’ beta-tested route to 225 matches ours except at 100-125. Run through the same formula, it needs about 350 Light Leather and 10 Medium Hides where ours needs 211 and 25. Our swap saves about 140 Light Leather for 15 Medium Hides, 15 Gray Dye and one estimated learn level.
Leatherworking 225-300: The Untested Part
Leatherworking 225 to 300 in WoW Forever can’t be tested before launch, because Artisan needs character level 35. The thresholds below are from the beta client; the route is our plan on paper. Rugged Armor Kit is the last cheap trainer recipe, and every cheap step after it needs a pattern that Zockify lists as “source not known yet”.
| Skill | Recipe (yellow / grey) | Crafts | Materials | Recipe from |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 225-235 | Rugged Armor Kit (225 / 245) | 13 | 67 Rugged Leather | Trainer, about 225 (our estimate) |
| 235-255 | Wicked Leather Gauntlets (255 / 275) | 20 | 160 Rugged Leather, 20 Black Dye, 20 Rune Thread | Pattern, skill 235, source unknown |
| 255-260 | Wicked Leather Bracers (260 / 280) | 5 | 40 Rugged Leather, 5 Black Dye, 5 Rune Thread | Pattern, skill 240, source unknown |
| 260-280 | Wicked Leather Boots (280 / 300) | 20 | 200 Rugged Leather, 20 Black Dye, 20 Rune Thread | New pattern, skill 260, source unknown |
| 280-300 | Blue Suede Bracers (295 / 315) | 21 | 206 Rugged Leather, 21 Blue Dye, 21 Rune Thread | New pattern, skill 275, source unknown |
In Classic, vendors sold the Wicked Leather Gauntlets and Bracers patterns. The new Tooled Leather and Blue Suede lines have recipes with the same thresholds and leather cost at each step, so whichever pattern turns up first will do. Without patterns, every option is expensive: Nightscape Boots (16 Thick Leather, grey at 250), the specialization recipes (40 Thick Leather plus rare materials each) or Merchant’s Favor gear, which needs 6 to 10 Pristine Hides per craft.
Leatherworking 1-300 Shopping List
This is the full shopping list for our WoW Forever Leatherworking route, from expected craft counts. Add 5 to 10% for unlucky yellow crafts.
| Material | 1-225 | 225-300 (on paper) | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ruined Leather Scraps | 95 | 95 | |
| Light Leather | 211 | 211 | |
| Medium Leather | 271 | 271 | |
| Heavy Leather | 208 | 208 | |
| Thick Leather | 302 | 302 | |
| Rugged Leather | 673 | 673 | |
| Light Hide / Medium Hide / Heavy Hide | 26 / 25 / 44 | 95 | |
| Salt (50 copper) | 181 | 181 | |
| Coarse Thread (10 copper) | 91 | 91 | |
| Fine Thread (1 silver) | 140 | 140 | |
| Silken Thread (5 silver) | 131 | 131 | |
| Gray Dye (3 silver 50) | 25 | 25 | |
| Rune Thread (50 silver) | 66 | 66 | |
| Black Dye (10 silver) / Blue Dye (50 copper) | 45 / 21 | 66 |
Vendor prices are the beta client’s, the same as Classic; any leatherworking supply vendor sells them. From 225 to 300, Rune Thread and dye add about 38 gold and Artisan training 4.5 gold.
Leather Needed per Bracket and Where It Comes From
Leather demand for WoW Forever Leatherworking is small until 75, then each tier takes its turn: Light to 125, Medium for 125-155, Heavy for 155-195, Thick for 195-225 and Rugged for everything after.
| Leather | Our route uses it at | Skinned from (Classic, roughly) |
|---|---|---|
| Light Leather, Ruined Leather Scraps | 1-125 | Beasts up to about level 20 |
| Medium Leather | 125-155 | Beasts around level 15 to 30 |
| Heavy Leather | 155-195 | Beasts around level 25 to 40 |
| Thick Leather | 195-225 | Beasts around level 35 to 50 |
| Rugged Leather | 225-300 | Beasts around level 45 to 60 |
| Pristine Leather, Pristine Hide, Pristine Scale | Rare gear only | Scarce finds while skinning, new in Forever |
Forever’s skinning tables aren’t public, so the level ranges are Classic’s; hides drop alongside their leather, less often. The timing problem is 195 to 225: about 300 Thick Leather while you’re likely level 30 to 35, and Thick Leather drops from about 35. Buy it, or pause at 195. Pristine Leather (item level 25) and Pristine Hide (45) are uncommon Scarce materials; the Bountiful Harvest Legacy perk raises what you gather, per Blizzard’s systems panel recap.
Rare Leveling Gear for Every Spec
WoW Forever Leatherworking adds six lines of bind-on-pickup rare leather armor for levels 12 to 25, which is what our WoW Forever professions guide means by gear for every spec. The chest (level 15), pants (20) and helm (25) come from the trainer according to SeeMeta (Zockify has no source yet) and give skill until 80, 105 and 130. Gloves, hood and leggings drop in low-level dungeons or cost 30 Merchant’s Favor; belt, boots and tunic cost 30 Favor.
| Line | Stats (beta client) | Chest reagent besides leather |
|---|---|---|
| Brawler’s | Agility, Strength | Shadowgem |
| Trapper’s | Agility, Intellect | Deviate Scale |
| Defender’s | Strength, Stamina, extra armor | Elixir of Minor Fortitude |
| Totemic | Strength, Intellect, spell power | Sulfuric Acid |
| Stormrider’s | Intellect, spell power | Cerulean Dye |
| Wisdom’s | Intellect, healing | Small Lustrous Pearl |
The chest takes 16 Light Leather and 2 Cured Light Hides, and the dungeon patterns add 2 to 8 Pristine Leather. Seven more lines (Mender’s, Skycaller’s, Skirmisher’s, Warden’s, Stalker’s, Skulker’s, Prowler’s) cover skill 150 to 250 in leather and mail; their Favor patterns all need Pristine Hide.
Camp Tent, Tanning Rack and Sewing Machine
Leatherworking’s camp objects in WoW Forever are the Camp Tent, the Tanning Rack and the Sewing Machine. The last two matter beyond camping: 139 Leatherworking recipes in the beta client can only be crafted next to one.
- Camp Tent (trainer, skill 20; 5 Light Leather): yellow at 20, grey at 25, so make one when you learn it. It tops your rested XP up to 5% of a level, according to Icy Veins’ camping guide.
- Tanning Rack (Blueprint, skill 140; 5 Medium Leather, 3 Fine Thread, 2 Simple Wood): the Blueprint drops from Razorclaw the Butcher in Shadowfang Keep, per Zockify. Blizzard’s systems panel recap says it is “required for more advanced Leatherworking recipes”. In the beta client that means 48 recipes, among them Cured Rugged Hide, the six specialization recipes (Dragonscale Gauntlets and Breastplate, Wolfshead Helm, Feathered Breastplate, Gauntlets of the Sea, Helm of Fire), the dungeon-drop leggings and 31 of the new rare recipes from skill 150 on. Nothing on our route to 235 needs one.
- Sewing Machine (Blueprint, skill 300; Undeath Engine, 5 Rugged Leather, Rune Thread): source unknown. 91 recipes need it, all of them from skill 285 up, including Onyxia Scale Cloak, Hide of the Wild and the new Wild Leather Armor Kit.
Armor Kits, the Light Leather Reagent Bag and the Saddle
WoW Forever armor kits now add Stamina on top of armor, per the beta client’s enchant text, and new Forceful and Mystic versions of the Medium to Rugged kits add Attack Power or spell power instead. All go on chest, legs, hands or feet, not bracers. Blizzard’s October 8 beta notes fixed Attack Power kits that granted double Ranged Attack Power. Forceful Thick costs 60 Favor and Mystic Rugged 90 Favor, Mystic Thick comes from the quest Leather Technique, and the other five have no known source.
The Light Leather Reagent Bag has 6 slots, binds on equip and takes 8 Light Leather, a Cured Light Hide and 3 Coarse Thread; it gives points from 30 to 50. Zockify lists the pattern as a reward from the quest Beasts of Thunder Ridge, which is in Durotar, so Alliance access is unknown. Tailoring’s 6-slot Linen Reagent Bag has no known pattern source yet (see our WoW Forever tailoring guide), so this may be launch week’s only 6-slot reagent bag.
The saddle is unconfirmed. Zockify’s overview lists a craftable saddle worth up to 5% mounted speed at max level, but we found no saddle recipe in the beta client’s Leatherworking data. Our WoW Forever mount guide has the confirmed riding costs.
Merchant’s Favor, Dungeon Drops and Craftsman’s Writs
Zockify counts 81 Leatherworking patterns with a Merchant’s Favor price in WoW Forever, at 30, 60 or 90 Favor. You earn Favor from Waylaid Crates and spend it at the Azeroth Commerce Authority camp at Three Corners in Redridge (10.5, 72.7) or the Durotar Supply and Logistics camp west of the Crossroads (49.7, 29.5). Favor is per character, and at 300, 1,000 Favor buys the Leatherworking Certification and the account-wide “the Leatherworker” title.
Blizzard’s October 1 notes enabled the dungeon-drop Leatherworking recipes. Per Zockify they drop in the Deadmines, Shadowfang Keep, Wailing Caverns, Blackfathom Deeps, the Stockade, Ragefire Chasm, Razorfen Kraul, Scarlet Monastery and Gnomeregan.
Craftsman’s Writs (tradeable, 75 to 200 reputation per turn-in) don’t ask for anything on our route; the trainer recipes on Zockify’s list of 30 Leatherworking writs are Heavy Quiver, Dusky Bracers, Quickdraw Quiver, Thick Leather Ammo Pouch, Turtle Scale Breastplate and Gordok Ogre Suit.
What to Keep or Sell While Leveling Leatherworking
- Keep: the Cured Light Hides for your rare chest and pants, and a few Rugged Armor Kits, which are the base of the Forceful and Mystic Rugged kits.
- Sell: Light Leather Reagent Bags if you get the pattern, and armor kits once players start enchanting their leveling gear.
- Vendor or disenchant: every route item from Embossed Leather Gloves to the Nightscape pieces is uncommon, so an enchanter can turn them into dust.
What We Don’t Know Yet
- Learn levels for Dark Leather Belt (we say 100) and Rugged Armor Kit (225). Both follow a rule that fits every tested recipe, but nobody has tested these two.
- Where the patterns for Leatherworking 235 to 300 come from, and whether the Light Leather Reagent Bag pattern is available to the Alliance.
- Whether the specializations still need level 40 and skill 225, as in Classic. Zockify says all three are kept.
- Whether Forever’s skill-up chances follow Classic’s formula. Our craft counts assume they do.
- Whether the saddle exists, and how often Pristine materials drop.
FAQ
Where is the leatherworking trainer in WoW Forever?
Every capital has Apprentice and Journeyman leatherworking trainers in WoW Forever, for example Kamari and Karolek in Orgrimmar’s Drag and Randal Worth and Simon Tanner in Stormwind. Expert is only taught by Telonis in Darnassus and Una in Thunder Bluff, Artisan by Drakk Stonehand in Aerie Peak and Hahrana Ironhide in Camp Mojache.
What is the fastest way to level Leatherworking 1-300 in WoW Forever?
Craft cheap orange recipes and keep the reagents: Cured Light Hide to 55, Embossed Leather Gloves to 75, Fine and Dark Leather Belts to 125, Hillman’s Leather Gloves to 155, Guardian Gloves to 195 and Nightscape pieces to 225, then Rugged Armor Kits and patterns. That is about 330 crafts.
Does WoW Forever have leatherworking specializations?
Most likely. Zockify’s overview says Dragonscale, Elemental and Tribal Leatherworking all return, and their recipes are still trainer recipes in the beta data. In WoW Forever those recipes need a Tanning Rack, and the requirements to choose one can’t be tested in the level 30 beta.
Sources: Blizzard’s systems panel recap and beta development notes (October 1 and 8). Beta data from SeeMeta, Zockify, WoW-Professions and Icy Veins; the game data of the beta client (build 1.60.1.70338) and of Classic Era, read via wago.tools; rank costs from wow.gg. Maps: Blizzard Entertainment, from Warcraft Wiki’s map files.