After Hours

A bit of technology in a world of magic

By // May 22, 2008, 11:49 PM PST

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  • Metral the Hunter

    This is a picture of Metral the Hunter, member of Technologia the official unofficial guild of Tech Republic. Metral is a highly skilled Engineer.

    Engineering provides the player with many crafted items including clothing, such as the Surestrike Goggles v2.0 pictured above, and pets, like the non-combat "companion" pet Mechanical Squirrel also above. While companions cannot engage in combat, Engineers are also able to make combat pets, such as an Explosive Sheep, which charges a target and then explodes causing damage.

    Continue on for a deeper look into the Engineering profession.

  • Steam Tonk

    Engineers can also create items for their friends, such as the Steam Tonk. The Steam Tonk is another example of a combat pet, although this one can only damage other Steam Tonks. A Steam Tonk has the ability to Shoot and Drop Mines (as shown on left) as well as the ability to fire a Mortar (right) which does damage to Tonks in an area. I couldn't guess as to the amount of time you could kill playing with these.

  • Bombs and Grenades

    Above, Metral is trying to get the attention of a passing Teromoth in Terokkar Forest. Metral's first throw of an Adamantite Grenade misses the Teromoth, but a shot with a Fel Iron Bomb gets his attention. I guess I better stop goofing around and kill that Moth.

    Bombs and Grenades either do Damage, Stun a target or targets in an area, or both. These are very useful when in combat because they give the Engineer another form of attack.

  • Field Repair Bot 110G

    Engineers can also help their friends out when running Dungeons or Raids. Shown above is a Field Repair Bot 110G which the Engineer can drop anywhere in the World and give their friends the ability to repair damaged armor, sell garbage loot gathered, and purchase items needed for many classes' casted enhancements as well as the occasional potion or enhancement scroll. Also available are simple arrows and bullets for Hunters should they run out.

  • Teleportation

    Mages aren't the only ones who can Teleport themselves around the world. Engineers, upon reaching a certain level, may choose either Gnomish or Goblin engineering. Among other things, this gives the Engineer the ability to teleport him or herself to select towns both in Azeroth and the Outlands. Gnomish engineers can learn to teleport to Gadgetzan in Tanaris and Toshley's Station in Blades Edge Mountains while Goblin engineers (like Metral) can teleport to Everlook in Winterspring and Area 52 in Netherstorm.

    Teleportation is triggered by a Trinket called a Dimensional Ripper. (Lovely name, isn't it?) Unfortunately, like many of the armor items, sometimes the teleport malfunctions. Shown above are some of the misfortunes one can suffer: Soul Split: Good, Soul Split: Evil, assume the form of the last user, On Fire! (which can actually kill you if you don't bandage, eat, or drink a healing potion quick), Shrink, and other random forms such as a Trogg. Fortunately, these effects wear off after a short time.

  • Zapthrottle Mote Extractor

    One cool tool an Engineer is able to make is the Zapthrottle Mote Extractor. This tool gives the Engineer the ability to walk up to a special cloud and extract Motes, the building blocks of Primal elements. Shown above are: Swamp Gas (a teal-colored cloud) which yields Motes of Water in Zangarmarsh, Windy Cloud (a white cloud) which yields Motes of Air in Nagrand, Mana Vortex (invisible to the naked eye, but visible when wearing the goggles in the first image) which yields Motes of Mana in Netherstorm, and Fel Mist (green-colored cloud) which yields Motes of Shadow in Shadowmoon Valley. Each cloud has the ability to give 3-5 Motes. Contrary to popular belief, the apparent physical size of the cloud does not determine the number of Motes received. Couple this with the Mining profession and engineers can gather almost all types of Motes.

  • Gyro-Balanced Khorium Destroyer

    This is no ordinary gun. Probably the most powerful gun in the game (especially when coupled with a Khorium Scope), the Gyro-Balanced Khorium Destroyer packs quite a whallop when attacking a computer-controlled "Mob" or another player in PvP combat. That's not to say it shouldn't as gathering the materials to create this weapon will either take hours of "farming" or hundreds, if not thousands, of Gold coins to purchase from other players in the in-game Auction House. I especially like the fancy green shooting effect shown on the right.

    Engineers can also craft some of the most powerful ammunition (both bullets for guns and arrows for bows) in the game. Fear not fellow Azerothians, Engineers can create guns and ammunition for anyone able to spend the time and/or money to gather the materials required.

  • Turbo-Charged Flying Machine

    If the Gyro-Balanced Khorium Destroyer wasn't the crown jewel of the Engineering profession, the Turbo-Charged Flying Machine surely must be. Also a serious tax on either time or money to create, this machine will allow the player to travel at speeds comparable to any epic flying mount available in-game. Unfortunately for you non-engineers, this item requires engineering skill to operate.

    I especially like the added touch of the dashboard-mounted Hula Girl Doll, which adds a nice effect. Also, it's a good thing the Outlands doesn't have an EPA because they'd be throwing a fit about all that pollution!

    All in all, engineering is an amazing profession of specialized armor, handy trinkets, fun pets, powerful explosives, super-cool guns and ammunition, and turbo-speed flying machines. As I reflected once, now all we need is a submarine!

Metral the Hunter

This is a picture of Metral the Hunter, member of Technologia the official unofficial guild of Tech Republic. Metral is a highly skilled Engineer.

Engineering provides the player with many crafted items including clothing, such as the Surestrike Goggles v2.0 pictured above, and pets, like the non-combat "companion" pet Mechanical Squirrel also above. While companions cannot engage in combat, Engineers are also able to make combat pets, such as an Explosive Sheep, which charges a target and then explodes causing damage.

Continue on for a deeper look into the Engineering profession.

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