Even More Specialized Gems - What's New with Jewelcrafting in The War Within
The War Within introduces interesting new mechanics to both Crafting and Gathering Professions. While players expect Profession updates each time a new expansion launches, The War Within is bringing an unusual number of changes that can alter how the flow of a Profession works, or make the Crafting or Gathering process more difficult than it has been in the past.
We're taking a look at what's new and different with each Profession — this time, with a look at Jewelcrafting! While we're only focused on one small part of this Profession for this deep dive, you can find extensive information in our The War Within Jewelcrafting Guide, as well as overall Profession information in our Profession Overview.
The War Within Jewelcrafting Guide Profession Overview in The War Within
What's New with Jewelcrafting?
While changes to some other Professions come in the form of new crafting bonuses or deadly mechanics to mitigate, Khaz Algar Jewelcrafting changes are focused primarily on Specializations and subsequently how to acquire recipes. Jewelcrafters will notice that, for those looking to focus on gemcutting, the Knowledge Point cost of entry is significantly higher — and gems are far more specialized than before.
In Dragonflight, Jewelcrafters looking to master gemcutting only had to worry about four main Specialization nodes. These nodes, at 40 Knowledge Points each, focused on a different archetype of cut — Fire cuts, for instance, prioritized Critical Strike, while Haste cuts favored Air. Now, for each gem in The War Within besides the base Amber (Stunning Sapphire, Radiant Ruby, Ostentatious Onyx, and Extravagant Emerald), each cut has its own Specialization — meaning a Deadly Onyx and a Quick Ruby require separate Knowledge Point investments.
This more than doubles the required Knowledge Points to max the Gemcutting Specialization compared to its Dragonflight iteration. While it provides more control over specific crafts, it also pigeonholes Crafters in the early
