To level Mining in World of Warcraft: Forever, learn it from a Mining trainer, buy a Mining Pick, turn on Find Minerals and mine every vein your skill allows, moving to the next ore and the next zone as your skill climbs. Train Journeyman at 50 skill, Expert at 125 and Artisan at 200, and smelt your ore into bars along the way, because smelting raises Mining skill too.
Mining is a gathering profession, so it costs nothing but a pick and pays from the first zone. Below are the trainers, the skill each ore needs, the best zones for each band, and how to use smelting to skip slow stretches. Forever’s ore and node rules follow the original game except where we say otherwise, and Blizzard has not announced changes to the skill requirements below.
How Mining Works in WoW Forever
- Learn Mining from a Mining trainer. It takes one of your two primary profession slots.
- Buy a Mining Pick from a Trade Supplies vendor and keep it in your bags. You do not equip it.
- Cast Find Minerals (it comes with the profession) to show veins on your minimap.
- Right-click a vein to mine it. You get ore, sometimes stone and gems, and a chance at a skill point.
Nodes need a minimum skill, and the color of the node’s tooltip works like a recipe color: orange always gives a point, yellow usually does, green rarely and gray never. You only get a skill-up from the first swing at a vein, so move on once you have it unless you need the ore.
Forever starts you off with a new node: Blizzard’s development notes mention Poor Copper Vein nodes in the starting areas, which yield Copper Ore and Rough Stone from skill 1. Blizzard trimmed how many there are during the beta, so expect competition for them in busy starting zones.
Mining Trainers for Every Rank
| Rank | Skill range | Requirement | Where to train |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apprentice | 1 to 75 | A free primary slot | Junior Mining trainers in starting areas, plus Zephras Isle and every capital Mining trainer |
| Journeyman | Up to 150 | 50 skill, level 10 | Capital trainers: Stormwind (Gelman Stonehand), Ironforge (Geofram Bouldertoe), Orgrimmar (Makaru), Undercity (Brom Killian), Thunder Bluff (Brek Stonehoof) |
| Expert | Up to 225 | 125 skill, level 20 | The same capital trainers |
| Artisan | Up to 300 | 200 skill, level 35 | The same capital trainers |
Darnassus has no Mining trainer; night elves train with Kurdram Stonehammer in Auberdine, Darkshore. Junior trainers in starting areas stop at Apprentice, so head to a capital at 50.
What Skill Each Ore Needs
| Node | Mining skill to mine | Ore |
|---|---|---|
| Copper Vein (and Poor Copper Vein) | 1 | Copper Ore |
| Tin Vein | 65 | Tin Ore |
| Incendicite Mineral Vein | 65 | Incendicite Ore (quest ore in the Wetlands) |
| Silver Vein | 75 | Silver Ore |
| Iron Deposit | 125 | Iron Ore |
| Gold Vein | 155 | Gold Ore |
| Mithril Deposit | 175 | Mithril Ore |
| Truesilver Deposit | 230 | Truesilver Ore |
| Small Thorium Vein | 245 | Thorium Ore |
| Rich Thorium Vein | 275 | Thorium Ore |
These are the original game’s requirements. Silver, Gold and Truesilver nodes are rare spawns in place of the common ore, so you will mostly level on Copper, Tin, Iron, Mithril and Thorium.
Mining Leveling Route by Zone
| Skill | Mine | Alliance zones | Horde zones |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 to 65 | Copper | Elwynn Forest, Dun Morogh, Westfall, Loch Modan | Durotar, Mulgore, Tirisfal Glades, The Barrens |
| 65 to 125 | Tin, Copper, Silver | Wetlands, Redridge Mountains, Duskwood | Silverpine Forest, Hillsbrad Foothills, The Barrens, Stonetalon Mountains |
| 125 to 175 | Iron, Tin, Gold | Arathi Highlands, Desolace, Stranglethorn Vale | Thousand Needles, Arathi Highlands, Desolace, Stranglethorn Vale |
| 175 to 245 | Mithril, Truesilver | The Hinterlands, Tanaris, Searing Gorge | The Hinterlands, Tanaris, Feralas |
| 245 to 300 | Thorium, Mithril | Un’Goro Crater, Felwood, Winterspring, Eastern Plaguelands, Burning Steppes | Un’Goro Crater, Felwood, Winterspring, Eastern Plaguelands, Burning Steppes |
Skyborne characters can start on Zephras Isle, and night elves can add Darkshore to the list. Mines and caves pack nodes close together, but the creatures inside can be tough at your level, so go in with a friend or a few extra levels.
Smelting for Skill
Smelting ore into bars at a forge also gives Mining skill, which lets you level without hunting for nodes when a band is slow. Learn each smelting recipe from your Mining trainer:
| Smelt | Learn at | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Copper | 1 | A good way to finish the first 65 points |
| Tin and Bronze | 65 | Bronze takes Copper and Tin Bars |
| Silver | 75 | Rare ore, so few points |
| Iron | 125 | Iron Bars feed Steel later |
| Gold | 155 | Quick points when you find Gold Ore |
| Steel | 165 | Iron Bars plus Coal from a vendor |
| Mithril | 175 | |
| Truesilver | 230 | |
| Thorium | 250 |
Bars also sell better than ore to blacksmiths and engineers, and our Blacksmithing leveling guide and Engineering leveling guide show which bars each band needs.
Tips for Leveling Mining
- Mine while you quest. You pass nodes in every zone you level in, and the skill follows your level almost on its own.
- Raise your skill with gear. An enchanter can put Enchant Gloves – Mining or Enchant Gloves – Advanced Mining on your gloves, and Engineering’s Goblin Mining Helmet adds Mining skill too. A few extra points let you mine the next ore a little early.
- Take Bountiful Harvest. This Legacy perk adds extra Scarce resources when you mine, herb or skin. Mining does not earn Legacy Points itself, since Blizzard’s Legacy system overview pays only for crafting professions.
- Pair it with a crafter. Blacksmithing and Engineering both eat ore; our best professions for each class guide covers which classes want them.
- Fill crates with spare ore. Waylaid Crates ask for profession materials and pay Merchant’s Favor; our Merchant’s Favor guide covers how.
If you change your mind, our professions guide shows how to unlearn Mining, and every Forever guide we have is on our World of Warcraft hub.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where do you train Mining in WoW Forever? Junior trainers in starting areas teach Apprentice. For Journeyman, Expert and Artisan, visit the Mining trainer in Stormwind, Ironforge, Orgrimmar, the Undercity or Thunder Bluff.
What skill do you need to mine Iron? 125 Mining. Mithril needs 175 and Small Thorium Veins need 245.
Does smelting give Mining skill? Yes. Smelting ore at a forge raises Mining, which helps through slow bands.
What is a Poor Copper Vein? A Forever node in the starting areas that gives Copper Ore and Rough Stone from skill 1.
Do you need to equip the Mining Pick? No. Keep it in your bags.
Does Mining give Legacy Points? No. Only the six crafting professions earn Legacy Points.