LOTRO - What Are Vocations?

A vocation in Lord of the Rings Online is basically a set of professions that you choose to have your toon do in the game to make money and items that they need or want to use. Depending on which vocation you choose, you will be able to make great items for your toons to use throughout the game. You will also be able to gather up mats for other professions to use that you can then sell for a good profit to help you gain the money you need in game.

So, let's take a closer look at the different vocations and the professions that make them all up.

The armorer is a vocation that is composed of the following professions: Metalsmithing, Tailoring, and Prospecting. As an armorer, you will be able to make a ton of different items, but you'll find that your specialty will be in shields and heavier armor. You will also be able to prospect, or mine, ores and them smelt the metals that you need - or want to sell for a profit. And, with tailoring under your belt, you will also be able to make hides and leather armor for yourself and other gamers.

The armsman is able to make just about any type of weapon that you might need in-game. So, for those that are wanting to make some good money, this is a great profession to take on as you can make your own weapons (that will save you some cash) and sell other weapons on the auction for gamers that aren't able to make them. As an armsman, you will gain three professions: Woodworking, Weaponsmith, and Prospecting.

For those that choose the explorer profession, you'll find that you are suddenly able to make your living off the land. This vocation offers three professions as well: Prospecting, Tailoring, and Foresting. For those that choose this path, you will be able to craft light and medium armor from leather as well as cure hides for others to use, and you will be able to prospect ores and gather up woods and other items from the forest that other professions need to use. This is a great vocation to pick up for those that love gathering professions.

The historian is made up of the Scholar, Farming, and Weaponsmithing professions and is a great choice for anyone who loves to learn about the lore of the game and help other players gather talents and abilities. This vocation helps to cultivating food mats and to make weapons that they, and other gamers, need in battle.

The Tinker vocation includes the Prospector, Jeweller, and Cook professions. The primary role of the Tinker is to create jewelry items. Since they are able to harvest their own needed resources, they are a one stop jewelry shop. The ability to make food is really just an added bonus here.

This is another vocation that will offer you some great ways to live off the lands, and will offer those that use a bow as their main weapon a great way to gain superb bows by creating them yourself. As a Woodsman, you'll gain three professions: Farming, Foresting, and Woodworking. You will find that the mats you gain from Farming will always sell well, as will the wood that you gather up from Foresting. This is a great vocation for Hunters and other classes that rely heavily on bows.

Want a great vocation that will allow you to gather items that you can use and sell for a great price? The Yeoman offers the following three professions: Cooking, Farming, and Tailoring. You will be able to gather and use foods from Farming and you will also be able to tan and use the skins from animals to make armor and sell the mats on the auction house. This is a great vocation for those that wear light or medium armor, as you'll always be able to create your own items and use them in game.

And there you have it - the seven vocations that you can choose in Lord of the Rings Online for your toons. It's always best to choose vocations that will compliment each other if you have several toons on one server so that you can save some money on materials and items that you might need.