World of Warcraft Needs a Tinker Class

Firearms and tanks in otherwise pre-industrial societies, comically large piles of crude explosives, meandering contraptions of questionable function and even more dubious construction. These are all as much staples of Warcraft‘s aesthetic as the orcs and dragons it may be better known for. But despite how popular and recurring the theme of goofy fantasy technology is, there has never been a character Class focused around it. Now, with the reveal of WoW‘s Goblin-centric Update 11.1, players are once again discussing the possibility of a new World of Warcraft class to fill that niche: a technology-focused fighter concept usually referred to as the Tinker.

Now, speculation regarding a Tinker Class in World of Warcraft isn’t new. Even a cursory Youtube search will bring up videos from over 5 years ago half-jokingly declaring the inevitability of the Tinker’s WoW arrival. That, of course, never happened but the desire for one has remained significant enough that the new patch information immediately spawned a new round of hopeful videos. One group of enterprising modders even decided to make their own rather than wait for Blizzard to do so, which I think is testament to the enduring popularity of the idea.

And it’s easy to see the appeal of the Tinker (or whatever other name you would prefer). While some classes channel magic, rely on their physical strength and agility, or wield a mix of both, the Tinker utilizes a suite of custom-made gadgets and their own intelligence. As a non-magic based intellect class it has a strong and as-yet unrepresented fantasy, but it’s also open-ended enough to translate to a multitude of potential playstyles. Mechanized exo-skeletons and forcefields would suit a tanking role, while injected concoctions and portable medical devices support a healing role. Or, Blizzard could expand on the ‘support’ role introduced with the Augmentation Evoker, letting the Tinker use their gadgets to amplify other player’s outputs. Whatever niche the developers feel needs filling.

But it’s not the mechanical implications that make it such a good fit, it’s the fantasy and theming. There’s no shortage of fan-made class ideas floating around, like D&D staple the Bard. But something like that doesn’t have quite that same presence in the Warcraft world, even if it’s a popular idea. The Tinker, meanwhile, draws on theming that has been with the Warcraft series since its RTS days, and is already represented by several characters like Gazlowe (who was prominent enough to appear in Heroes of the Storm) and High Tinker Mekkatorque (who featured as a raid encounter back in Battle for Azeroth) who can serve as archetypes and story stand-ins. Engineering has a long history as a profession too, while entire zones and instances like Mechagon and the upcoming Undermine content are all heavily based around the theme of wacky Warcraft technology. That’s what I mean when I say the Tinker class is overdue, the theming is *so* present that it’s odd it hasn’t shown up earlier.

But there’s also one more reason for why a Tinker class could be a fitting addition to WoW‘s roster, and that’s to do with the potential future direction of the World of Warcraft story. For those who haven’t followed the lore too closely, Blizzard began tightening up their universe and worldbuilding with the Chronicle books, beginning around 2016. These books codified the existence several types of fundamental energy in the world such as Arcane, Void, or Fel and described how many of the major factions were motivated by or otherwise aligned to them, which some players have criticized as ‘flattening’ the universe too much into known, sectioned quantities (though I don’t necessarily agree). But the theming of the Tinker is specifically not tied to any of these elements, and instead represents the the mortal inventions that arise from combining them. And with a lot of recent lore reveals related to the Titans, beings aligned to the Arcane that seek to mould Azeroth into their own image, what could be a better symbol of independence and self-determination to arrive during The Last Titan expansion?

It’s easy to fall in to demanding content for content’s sake, but in the Tinker’s case I think there really is a strong case for its inclusion in the WoW class roster. It’s simply such a beloved and integral part of the Warcraft aesthetic and world, that hasn’t seen the level of playable representation that others have. Where the Demon Hunter and Death Knight stand as iconic classes, I absolutely believe the Tinker deserves to stand alongside them.

World of Warcraft: The War Within is available now for PCs.