Blacksmith

What this profession is

The blacksmith turns rock into weapons and armor. You dig ore out of mountainsides, smelt it into ingots, and pound those ingots into swords, shields, and full suits of plate at a forge and anvil. It is the backbone craft of any fighting community — every warrior and archer needs gear, and the smith is who makes and repairs it. Smithing pairs gathering (Mining) with crafting (Blacksmithy) into one self-sufficient supply chain.

Core skills

Mining — dig ore from rock and mountainsides; the raw-material end of the chain.
Blacksmithy — smelt ore into ingots and forge them into arms and armor; the headline skill.
Tinkering — lets you craft your own smith hammers and tongs (and a forge/anvil deed), so you never have to buy tools.
Arms Lore — improves the quality of the weapons and armor you make, helping you turn out exceptional pieces more often.

The build

Follow the Blacksmith Template for the stat spread (heavy Strength for carrying ore and ingots), the skill order, and where to mine and smith at each stage. The classic loadout is Mining + Blacksmithy + Tinkering + Arms Lore plus combat or travel skills to round it out. For fitting seven grandmaster skills under the 700-point cap, see 7x GM Templates.

How to craft

Read Crafting for the craft menu and exceptional/quality mechanics, and Gathering Resources for the mining loop. The Blacksmithy crafting page lists the full recipe catalog and ingot requirements.

The loop: equip a smith’s hammer or tongs, find an ore vein, and mine until your pack is heavy with ore. Return to a forge, smelt the ore into ingots, then stand at an anvil and forge weapons and armor from the craft menu. Higher Blacksmithy plus Arms Lore yields exceptional items worth far more than plain ones. Mining lower mountains gives common iron; deeper or special veins yield colored ores (shadow, bronze, and up) that make stronger, pricier gear.

What you make / tools

Tools — a smith’s hammer and tongs to work the forge; a tinker can make these for you.
Resources — ore and ingots, the iron-to-colored-ore chain that feeds every recipe.
Weapons and the weapon catalog — swords, maces, and axes for fighters.
Armor and the armor catalog and shields — chain, ring, and plate suits.

Bulk Order Deeds (BODs): NPC smiths hand out deeds asking for a quantity of a given item; filling them returns reward bags with rare tools, ore, and runic hammers. Working BODs is a steady long-term income and gear source for a smith.

Making a living

Smiths earn several ways: sell bulk ingots to other crafters, turn out exceptional weapons and armor for player vendors and adventurers, and repair worn gear for a fee. The biggest long game is BOD rewards — runic hammers from filled bulk orders let you craft magical, high-resist gear that sells for serious gold. Move stock through Vendors & Banking.