Artisans

Artisans are a new class of NPCs introduced in Diablo III. They were first introduced at Gamescon 2010. Artisans will be part of the Caravan and craft items for the player. Multiple items can be queued before leaving for the wilderness and upon returning the items will be crafted. New recipes for Artisans to learn drop from monsters. After learning a certain recipe, Artisans can produce that item as long as the player has the ingredients and gold necessary. Ingredients are gained by salvaging items, a process which breaks them items down into its ingredients. This can be done in the inventory screen anywhere in the game world, reducing trips to vendors and adding incentive to pick up items that would be otherwise ignored. Salvaging is done using a chest that can be obtained through the course of the game, similar to the way the Horadric Cube was obtained. Crafted items have both set and random attributes.

Artisans also gain levels by practicing with the materials given to them, producing better items as they gain experience. The upgrades also improve the way the Artisans workshop looks.

There are different Artisans for different tasks:

Blacksmith

The Blacksmith makes and repairs armor and weapons. He can also add sockets to items. The blacksmith's family has been turned into zombies in New Tristram. The player has to put his family to rest to gain his trust.

Mystic

The Mystic creates magical items such as potions, scrolls, magical weapons (wands and staves), and skill runes. He can also enchant and identify items. No backstory has been revealed for this type of Artisan.

Jeweler

The Jeweler can combine gems to create higher quality ones. He can also remove gems from items. The jeweler is a greedy character who sees the character as a means to getting rich. His quest requires the player to retrieve a special gem.