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Skinning has often been heralded as a convenient profession inWorld of Warcraft. Unlike some other trades that require you to go out of your way to gather materials, such as Mining or Herbalism, Skinning benefits from gathering reagents off creatures that you defeat anyway for quests or other events.
Related:World Of Warcraft: Complete Guide To Mining
This profession is largely the same in Dragonflight, though there are a few key differences. Between the new specializations that were introduced and some crafting recipes, Skinning has received a face-lift alongside its fellow gathering trades. Here’s everything you need to know about Skinning in the latest expansion.
Overview
As one of the four gathering professions in the game, Skinning primarily deals withleathers and scales to hand off to Leatherworkers, Blacksmiths, and Tailors. In order to acquire these materials, you must seek outBeasts and Dragonkinaround the Dragon Isles, defeat them in combat, and fully loot them. Then, you’ll be able to click on them again to skin them.
While you could sell these reagents on the Auction House, you’d be better offpairing Skinning with Leatherworking or Tailoringto remake them into gear and other products that sell for much more.
You can pick up Dragon Isles Skinning fromRalathor the Rugged, the main Skinning trainer, who’s working within the lower ends of The Artisan’s Market in Valdrakken. You’ll want to pay him a visit often, as he can provide unique quests to help you in your journey.
Once you’ve situated your skill, you’ll want to purchase or make a few different pieces ofprofession equipmentfor yourself. By having one tool and two accessories equipped, you’ll receive ahefty bonus to your stats, granting you the ability to gather reagents that much quicker.
Leatherworking
Skinning Materials
In Dragonflight, Skinning is responsible for many more reagents than one might expect. While gathering leathers is still a big part of the job, you’ll have to be on the lookout for materials thatonly come from certain creatures, and there are a few crafting recipes to keep track of.
Leathers And Scales
As a core part of Skinning, the main reagents to gather are differentleathers and scales from almost any creaturewithin the Dragon Isles.
Rarity
Resilient Leather
A basic drop from leathery creatures anywhere on the Dragon Isles.
Common
Adamant Scales
A basic drop from scaly creatures anywhere on the Dragon Isles.
Rare
Exceptional Morsel
Sometimes found along Bite-Sized Morsels anywhere on the Dragon Isles. Requires the Lure Crafting specialization.
Species Specific Reagents
A new addition in Dragonflight, Skinners are now able to seek outspecific creatures to gather special reagents. These can be used by a variety of professions in higher-end recipes.
Uncommon
Bait And Fishing Lures
If you chooseto specialize in the Harvesting talent tree, then you’ll be able to gatherBite-Sized Morselsfrom your Skinning targets. These, along with the reagents from different species,can be used to craft a handful of recipes to lure out stronger creatures or certain types of fish.
Bait
Elusive Creature Bait
Placed on the ground to lure out a stronger creature that rewards more reagents when skinned.
Bait Crafter (20)
Infusion: Decay
Placed on the ground to lure out a Decay-infused creature that rewards more reagents when skinned.
Bait Crafter - Elemental Infusion (20)
Infusion: Earth
Placed on the ground to lure out an Earth-infused creature that rewards more reagents when skinned.
Bait Crafter - Elemental Infusion (10)
Infusion: Frost
Placed on the ground to lure out a Frost-infused creature that rewards more reagents when skinned.
Bait Crafter - Elemental Infusion
Infusion: Titan
Placed on the ground to lure out a Titan-infused creature that rewards more reagents when skinned.
Related:World Of Warcraft: Dragonflight - Complete Guide To Jewelcrafting
How To Rank Up In Skinning
Luckily, leveling up in Skinning is especially easy. Unlike the other professions that require you to keep an eye on guaranteed skill-ups from orange recipes, you simply have toskin Beasts or Dragonkin 100 timesuntil you reach the max level.
Every skinnable creature will provide you with a guaranteed level, so there’s no reason to fret over which species to target or if you should chase after elite mobs. However, it is worth noting that tougher targets will often grant you better reagents, so it might be worth it to keep an eye onskinnable bossesor elite creatures.
Skinning Specializations
The best change that came to Skinning when Dragonflight was introduced was the arrival ofspecializations. Now, instead of mindlessly grinding after every single enemy you can find, you can choose one of three different talent trees withDragon Isles Skinning Knowledge.
You should keep in mind that you won’t have enough Knowledge to specialize in all three trees at first, and it’s often recommended tofill out a single treebefore moving on to the next.
Tanning
The first specialization is calledTanning, and despite the name,it’s used to harvest more reagents of higher quality from your Skinning targets.This tree provides special recipes that allow you to refine the low-tier leathers and scales you have into silver or gold quality.
Harvesting
The next specialization,Harvesting, is responsible for the different fishing lures that you can create.You need to specialize within this tree to gain access to Bite-Sized Morsels and some of the different species-specific reagents.
Bait Crafter
Finally,Bait Crafteris the final specialization,which gives you the recipes to attract larger and more powerful creatures.These mobs often dropmore plentiful leathers and scales, and you have a chance at acquiringunique reagentslikeRousing Order.
Gathering Knowledge
Although Skinning is able to reach level 100 in record time compared to the other professions, it’s also significantly harder to come across Dragon Isles Skinning Knowledge. This is due to the fact thatKnowledge primarily comes from crafting different recipes, which are few and far between for Skinners.
With that said, there are still a number of ways to come across more Knowledge. While you’re out in the field, you may findCurious Hides and Saturated Bones, both of which can be used for more points.The quests that are periodically given by your trainer can also net you Knowledge.
Once you’ve done enough quests and gained enough Skinning levels, your trainer will direct you toKhadin the Master Artisanin Ohn’ahran Plains. Once you complete her quest line, you’ll be able tofind Dragon Shards of Knowledge while skinning creatures, which can be traded in to her to net you more specialization points.
