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Professions · Horde & Alliance

Merchant's Favor & Waylaid Crates

Waylaid Crates drop while you level. Fill one with the materials on its label, hand it to your faction's merchants and you get Merchant's Favor, a new currency testers spend on strong profession recipes. This guide lists every crate, the easiest way to fill each one, and what is still unknown.

Crate data from the beta client (build 1.60.1.69876) · tester reports checked · Sources

Your faction

Horde: Durotar Supply and Logistics

Where to hand crates in
Unconfirmed Beta testers report a camp of Durotar Supply and Logistics NPCs just west of the Crossroads in the Barrens. That is where crates are handed in and where the Merchant's Favor recipes are sold. tester report, Sep 20, 2026 · tester report, Sep 21, 2026
Faction items in the client
Durotar Supply and Logistics Tabard (Bind on Pickup)
  • The Crossroads is on the usual Horde route into the Barrens, so keep filled crates in your bags until you pass through instead of making a special trip.
  • The client data has a Forged Delivery Receipt for the Azeroth Commerce Authority only; no Horde version has shown up yet.

Alliance: Azeroth Commerce Authority

Where to hand crates in
Not reported yet. No source we can cite says where Alliance players find the Azeroth Commerce Authority. Tell us if you have seen it.
Faction items in the client
Azeroth Commerce Authority Tabard (Bind on Pickup), Forged Delivery Receipt
  • The Azeroth Commerce Authority sells Merchant's Favor recipes for every profession, including a long list of new alchemy recipes a tester posted.
  • Forged Delivery Receipt: slapped onto an empty Waylaid Crate, it lets you return the crate to the Azeroth Commerce Authority for +50 reputation (client data). So the organization has a reputation of its own, next to the Favor currency.

How it works

  1. Loot a Waylaid Crate (level 10+). The client describes it as "An eagerly awaited shipment that never arrived at its destination. Some of its supplies are missing."
  2. Read the label (use the crate). It becomes one specific shipment, such as Waylaid Crate: Apprentice Ingots.
  3. Fill it with one bundle from its list. Any one option is enough: 20 Copper Bar or 20 Tin Bar or 10 Bronze Bar. Higher tiers need a higher level: Apprentice 10+, Journeyman 10+, Expert 20+, Artisan 35+.
  4. Hand it in to the Durotar Supply and Logistics (Horde) or the Azeroth Commerce Authority (Alliance) for Merchant's Favor. The client calls it "Worth a considerable amount of gold and thus used as an interim currency among high-traffic merchant organizations."

What Merchant's Favor buys

Unconfirmed

From beta testers on the official forums; the vendor lists are not in the client data, so this may be incomplete.

  • Recipes for every profession, most of them for Bind on Pickup gear: you have to know the profession to wear what it makes. Sep 20, 2026 · Sep 21, 2026
  • Blue (rare) crafted gear up to about level 50 for Tailoring and level 58 for Blacksmithing was on the vendor, and Enchanting can make level 20 totems, librams and idols (also Bind on Pickup). Sep 21, 2026
  • New alchemy recipes such as Spellblasting Potion (+14 spell damage), Frenzy Potion (+14 attack power), Lesser Mageblood Elixir (+6 mana per 5 sec) and, higher up, Elixir of the Owl and Elixir of the Whale. Sep 19, 2026
  • A mount. Sep 20, 2026

Which crates are worth it

  • Crafting crates: make the easiest option. Each crafting crate below marks the bundle that needs the lowest-level recipes and the fewest raw materials. Prices and Favor per crate are not known yet, so this is effort, not gold.
  • Gathering crates: use what you already carry. Herbs, Ore, Textiles (cloth and leather) and Curiosities (enchanting dust, essences and shards) take raw materials only, and any one bundle fills them, so check your bags and bank before farming. Cloth drops from humanoids for every class, so Textiles crates need no profession at all.
  • Crafting crates want a matching profession. Fabrics use Tailoring or Leatherworking, Ingots use Mining (smelting), Parts use Engineering. The breakdown under each option shows the whole chain down to ore, cloth and hides.
  • Pick professions with the rewards in mind. Testers say the Favor recipes make Bind on Pickup gear strong enough that taking the crafting profession for your armor type (Blacksmithing for plate, Leatherworking for leather and mail, Tailoring for cloth) pays off while leveling. tester feedback
  • Legacy perk: Performance Bonus (3 ranks) in the professions Legacy tree. Latest client text: "You have a 15% chance to receive 100% increased Merchant's Favor when you turn in a crate to the Azeroth Commerce Authority or Durotar Supply and Logistics."

All 30 Waylaid Crates

Bundles from the beta client (build 1.60.1.69876); crafting chains from the WoW Forever recipe data. Easiest marks the crafting option with the least work.

Apprentice crates · level 10+

Apprentice Fabrics

Crafting: made with a profession · fill with one of:

  • 2 Cured Light Hide= 2 Light Hide, 2 Salt · Leatherworking
  • 20 Bolt of Linen ClothEasiest= 40 Linen Cloth · Tailoring

Apprentice Ingots

Crafting: made with a profession · fill with one of:

  • 20 Copper BarEasiest= 20 Copper Ore · Mining
  • 20 Tin Bar= 20 Tin Ore · Mining
  • 10 Bronze Bar= 5 Copper Ore, 5 Tin Ore · Mining

Apprentice Parts

Crafting: made with a profession · fill with one of:

Apprentice Curiosities

Gathering: raw materials · fill with one of:

  • 20 Strange Dust
  • 4 Greater Magic Essence
  • 6 Small Glimmering Shard
  • 2 Large Glimmering Shard

Apprentice Herbs

Gathering: raw materials · fill with one of:

  • 20 Peacebloom
  • 20 Silverleaf
  • 10 Earthroot
  • 10 Mageroyal
  • 10 Briarthorn

Apprentice Ore

Gathering: raw materials · fill with one of:

  • 20 Copper Ore
  • 20 Tin Ore

Apprentice Textiles

Gathering: raw materials · fill with one of:

  • 40 Linen Cloth
  • 20 Light Leather

Journeyman crates · level 10+

Journeyman Fabrics

Crafting: made with a profession · fill with one of:

  • 6 Bolt of Woolen ClothEasiest= 18 Wool Cloth · Tailoring
  • 10 Bolt of Silk Cloth= 40 Silk Cloth · Tailoring
  • 2 Cured Medium Hide= 2 Medium Hide, 2 Salt · Leatherworking

Journeyman Ingots

Crafting: made with a profession · fill with one of:

  • 10 Silver BarEasiest= 10 Silver Ore · Mining
  • 20 Iron Bar= 20 Iron Ore · Mining

Journeyman Parts

Crafting: made with a profession · fill with one of:

Journeyman Curiosities

Gathering: raw materials · fill with one of:

  • 20 Soul Dust
  • 4 Greater Astral Essence
  • 6 Small Glowing Shard
  • 2 Large Glowing Shard

Journeyman Herbs

Gathering: raw materials · fill with one of:

  • 10 Stranglekelp
  • 10 Bruiseweed
  • 10 Wild Steelbloom
  • 10 Grave Moss
  • 10 Kingsblood

Journeyman Ore

Gathering: raw materials · fill with one of:

  • 10 Silver Ore
  • 20 Iron Ore

Journeyman Textiles

Gathering: raw materials · fill with one of:

  • 20 Wool Cloth
  • 40 Silk Cloth
  • 20 Medium Leather

Expert crates · level 20+

Expert Fabrics

Crafting: made with a profession · fill with one of:

  • 8 Bolt of Mageweave= 40 Mageweave Cloth · Tailoring
  • 2 Cured Heavy HideEasiest= 6 Salt, 2 Heavy Hide · Leatherworking

Expert Ingots

Crafting: made with a profession · fill with one of:

  • 20 Mithril Bar= 20 Mithril Ore · Mining
  • 15 Steel BarEasiest= 15 Coal, 15 Iron Ore · Mining
  • 10 Gold Bar= 10 Gold Ore · Mining

Expert Parts

Crafting: made with a profession · fill with one of:

Expert Curiosities

Gathering: raw materials · fill with one of:

  • 20 Vision Dust
  • 4 Greater Mystic Essence
  • 6 Small Radiant Shard
  • 2 Large Radiant Shard

Earthly Expert Herbs

Gathering: raw materials · fill with one of:

  • 20 Liferoot
  • 10 Fadeleaf
  • 10 Goldthorn
  • 10 Khadgar's Whisker

Flowering Expert Herbs

Gathering: raw materials · fill with one of:

  • 10 Wintersbite
  • 10 Firebloom
  • 20 Purple Lotus
  • 10 Arthas' Tears

Expert Ore

Gathering: raw materials · fill with one of:

  • 10 Gold Ore
  • 20 Mithril Ore

Expert Textiles

Gathering: raw materials · fill with one of:

  • 40 Mageweave Cloth
  • 20 Heavy Leather

Artisan crates · level 35+

Artisan Fabrics

Crafting: made with a profession · fill with one of:

  • 8 Bolt of Runecloth= 40 Runecloth · Tailoring
  • 2 Cured Thick HideEasiest= 2 Deeprock Salt, 2 Thick Hide · Leatherworking

Artisan Ingots

Crafting: made with a profession · fill with one of:

  • 2 Dark Iron Bar= 16 Dark Iron Ore · Mining
  • 10 Truesilver BarEasiest= 10 Truesilver Ore · Mining
  • 20 Thorium Bar= 20 Thorium Ore · Mining

Artisan Parts

Crafting: made with a profession · fill with one of:

Artisan Curiosities

Gathering: raw materials · fill with one of:

  • 20 Dream Dust
  • 4 Greater Nether Essence
  • 6 Small Brilliant Shard
  • 2 Large Brilliant Shard

Earthly Artisan Herbs

Gathering: raw materials · fill with one of:

  • 10 Golden Sansam
  • 20 Sungrass
  • 10 Blindweed
  • 10 Ghost Mushroom
  • 10 Gromsblood

Flowering Artisan Herbs

Gathering: raw materials · fill with one of:

  • 20 Dreamfoil
  • 20 Mountain Silversage
  • 20 Plaguebloom
  • 20 Icecap

Artisan Ore

Gathering: raw materials · fill with one of:

  • 10 Truesilver Ore
  • 20 Thorium Ore
  • 20 Dark Iron Ore

Artisan Textiles

Gathering: raw materials · fill with one of:

  • 40 Runecloth
  • 20 Thick Leather
  • 20 Rugged Leather

Not known yet

  • How much Merchant's Favor a crate pays. The client data does not store it and no tester has posted numbers yet.
  • What each recipe or the mount costs in Favor.
  • Where Alliance players hand crates in.
  • How often crates drop. Testers describe them as rare, close to world drops.
  • Whether higher tiers pay more Favor than Apprentice crates.

Seen a Favor amount or a vendor price on the beta? Send it in and this guide adds it with your source.

Known crate bugs

  • Crates did not accept items whose maximum stack size is smaller than the amount asked for. Blizzard says this is fixed in the next beta build. Blizzard, Sep 17, 2026
  • Waylaid Crate: Apprentice Curiosities refused Greater Magic Essence and let you target Lesser Magic Essence instead (a tester saw it ask for 9999). Also fixed in the next beta build, per Blizzard. Blizzard, Sep 17, 2026 · tester, Sep 20, 2026

Merchant's Favor FAQ

What is Merchant's Favor in WoW Forever?

A currency you earn by handing filled Waylaid Crates to the Durotar Supply and Logistics (Horde) or the Azeroth Commerce Authority (Alliance). The beta client describes it as worth a considerable amount of gold, used as an interim currency among merchant organizations. Testers spend it on profession recipes and a mount.

How do Waylaid Crates work?

A Waylaid Crate drops as loot. Reading its label turns it into a specific shipment, for example Waylaid Crate: Apprentice Ingots. You fill it with any one bundle from its list, such as 20 Copper Bar, 20 Tin Bar or 10 Bronze Bar, then hand it in for Merchant's Favor.

Which Waylaid Crate option is the best to fill?

Prices are not known yet, so this guide ranks crafting crates by effort: the option that needs the lowest-level recipes and the fewest raw materials is marked Easiest. Gathering crates take raw materials only, so fill them with whatever bundle you already have.

Is this the same as the Season of Discovery supply crates?

The faction names come from Season of Discovery, but testers point out one difference: in Season of Discovery crates gave reputation, while in WoW Forever they pay Merchant's Favor, which buys the rewards. The Alliance Forged Delivery Receipt still gives reputation.

Does the Legacy tree help with crates?

Yes. Performance Bonus in the professions Legacy tree gives a chance for a crate hand-in to pay 100% more Merchant's Favor: 5% per rank in the planner data, 15% at the 3-rank maximum in the latest beta client.

Sources