Trade Skills Being Changed to Professions

[Martok]

In the next patch (no ETA as of yet), most trade skills are being renamed to "professions," and the way in which players acquire and learn them is changing. You will no longer learn different professions by paying for them with skill points. You'll still learn them by speaking to the appropriate profession trainer. However, players will now be restricted to learning two professions. We decided to change the skill system to make it simpler, balanced, and more intuitive. The new system should allow everyone to participate in one to two professions, and create a much more vibrant market for goods generated from professions.

We strongly encourage players to choose the two professions (trade skills) they wish to keep before the patch goes live so as to avoid the possibility of losing a hard-earned profession. If you have more than two trade skills known on your character, two will be chosen randomly to be retained as professions. The others will be eliminated from your character. Please unlearn the skills you do not wish to keep, and make sure that you only have two trade skills left on your character. To unlearn a trade skill, open your Skills window by pressing the hotkey “K.” Select the skill you wish to unlearn and click the Unlearn button that appears to the right of the skill.

The professions are: alchemy, blacksmithing, enchanting, engineering, herbalism, mining, leatherworking, skinning, and tailoring.

The secondary skills are: cooking, fishing, and first aid.

Several old trade skills are being turned into secondary skills. These do not count toward your two-profession limit, so players can learn all three secondary skills, in addition to their two professions, without restriction. The survival skill is being removed and campfires have been folded into the cooking profession.

No More Skill Points

With the changes to trade skills, skill points (SP) will be removed from the game, and currency will be used instead to train skills formerly based on SP.

Mount trainers will now require you to have a certain level of reputation with their respective city in order to acquire a mount.

[DashZero]

So, to learn 2HD Sword you will pay cash...I guess that works.

There sure were/are a lot of different numbers - XPs, stats, skill points - eliminating skill points is probably a good call.

[Darkstar]

The only thing I think I didn't like about SP is that given enough of them you could master EVERY skill. I agree with the change that it will limit people to a few instead of giving them the chance to master them all. Encourages community and cooperation. Good for the clan.