EverQuest 2: Choosing a Tradeskill Class

If you're just starting with crafting in EverQuest II, choosing a tradeskill class can feel overwhelming. Each class specialises in making different types of items, and your choice will determine what you can craft as you progress.

Whether you are creating your first crafter or deciding which tradeskill to give an existing character, understanding the different options will help you choose one that fits the way you play.

Understanding Tradeskills in EQ2

Tradeskill classes let you craft items such as equipment, weapons, food, potions, spells, furniture and other useful items. They are separate from your adventuring class and progress independently.

At level 10, you select one of three tradeskill archetypes: Craftsman, Outfitter or Scholar. At level 20, you specialise into one of nine final tradeskill classes.

Tradeskill Classes at a Glance

The table below summarises the nine tradeskill classes, their archetypes and the types of items they specialise in.

Archetype	Class	Specialisation	Why Choose This Class?
Craftsman	Carpenter	Furniture, house items and storage boxes	Ideal for housing enthusiasts who enjoy decorating.
	Provisioner	Food and drink	Great for producing consumables that support adventurers.
	Woodworker	Bows, arrows, shields and totems	Useful for creating weapons, shields and utility items such as totems.
Outfitter	Armorer	Plate and chain armour	Ideal for crafting armour for characters who use heavier armour.
	Tailor	Cloth and leather armour, bags	Useful for producing lighter armour and additional inventory space.
	Weaponsmith	Metal weapons and crafting tools	Focused on melee weapons and tools used for harvesting.
Scholar	Alchemist	Potions, poisons, cures and Fighter spell upgrades	Useful for producing consumables and spell upgrades.
	Jeweler	Jewellery and Scout spell upgrades	Combines wearable equipment with Scout spell upgrades.
	Sage	Mage and Priest spell upgrades	Ideal for players interested in crafting magical spell upgrades.

Choosing a Tradeskill to Complement Your Character

One obvious approach is to choose a tradeskill that complements your adventuring class.

For example, a Mage or Priest might choose Sage because it produces their spell upgrades. A Scout can benefit from having access to a Jeweler, while Fighters may find Alchemist useful for their spell upgrades and consumables.

This does not mean you have to match your tradeskill to your adventuring class. It is simply one way of making the decision.

Choosing for the Economy

Another approach is to consider what other players are likely to want.

Tradeskills such as Provisioner, Alchemist and Woodworker can produce consumable or utility items that adventurers may use regularly.

If you enjoy crafting for other players or selling your creations, demand on the market can therefore be an important consideration.

The economy will vary over time, however, so what is profitable today may not necessarily remain profitable tomorrow.

Choosing for Housing

If you enjoy decorating houses, Carpenter is an obvious choice.

Carpenters produce furniture and other housing-related items, as well as storage boxes. For players who regard housing as an important part of EverQuest II, this can make Carpenter a particularly rewarding tradeskill.

Choosing for Utility

You might also choose a tradeskill because of the useful items it can produce rather than because you want to make equipment.

Woodworkers, for example, can produce totems and other utility items in addition to their weapons and shields.

Tailors can produce bags, which can be particularly useful because inventory space is always valuable.

Sometimes the best tradeskill is simply the one that produces the items you find yourself needing most often.

You Can Always Create Alts

There is another important consideration: you do not have to make one character responsible for everything.

Each character can specialise in a single tradeskill class, so players who become heavily involved in crafting will often create additional characters to cover different tradeskills.

This allows you to build your own collection of specialist crafters rather than trying to make one character do everything.

It also means that choosing your first tradeskill does not lock you out of the others permanently.

Which Tradeskill Is Right for You?

There is no universally best tradeskill.

The right choice depends on what you enjoy doing in EverQuest II.

If you enjoy...	Consider...
Decorating houses	Carpenter
Making food and drink	Provisioner
Utility items and totems	Woodworker
Making heavier armour	Armorer
Making lighter armour and bags	Tailor
Making weapons and harvesting tools	Weaponsmith
Potions, poisons and Fighter spell upgrades	Alchemist
Jewellery and Scout spell upgrades	Jeweler
Mage and Priest spell upgrades	Sage

Crafting Is Part of the Journey

Choosing a tradeskill class is one of the first decisions you will make as a crafter, but it is only the beginning.

As you progress, you will gather resources, learn new recipes, discover new crafting systems and decide which items are worth producing for yourself, your friends or the wider EverQuest II community.

Whether you choose Carpenter because you love housing, Provisioner because you want to keep adventurers fed, or Sage because you want to produce spell upgrades, each tradeskill provides its own way of interacting with Norrath.

So choose the one that fits the way you want to play.

And remember: if you eventually decide you want to experience them all, there is always room for another character.