Engineering Pets 2.0, or "Who Needs Inscription, Anyway?"

First Step -- Free up a profession slot.


Second Step -- Learn engineering.


Third Step -- Farm pets.
(Your engineering skill does not affect pet drops! I have 1 skill point and got both on my first run.)

• Go to Gnomeregan in Dun Morogh. There's a shortcut from Booty Bay for horde.
• Once entering the underground tunnels, at the end of the ramp when you have a choice, go west. You'll find the instance entrance.
• If you have the Back Door Key, go north instead of west. In the Train Depot, enter the northern corridor and the back door is right there when you turn left. It will dump you into the southernmost part of the instance, and you can get to Thermaplugg by starting at the end of my second list of directions and going backward. Or just bear northwest. Whichever works.
  

Directions:

• First chamber is the Hall of Gears. Get down to the bottom (levitate or use ramps in southern offshoots).
• Enter the western corridor. It'll go on for a while. You'll enter another circular room: Launch Bay. (Recommended: Kill boss on platform in center of room for Gnomer's back door key.)
• Look for Peacekeeper Security Suits around the ring and down in the bottom. Kill and loot for Lil Smoky Schematic.
  
• Jump down. Head south into another corridor. Kill Arcane Nullifiers as you go. They also drop Lil Smoky Schematic.
  
• At the end, you'll see a door marked "Final Chamber." Open. Enter.
• You'll see Mekgineer Thermaplugg behind a small crowd of mobs. Kill him. Hope he drops Bombling Schematic.

By this point, you ought to have both schematics. If you don't have Bombling, get out of the instance and reset it. You have to do Thermaplugg again (but this time you have the back door key).

If you don't have Lil Smoky:

• Starting from Thermaplugg's room.
• Go back down the main corridor you just came up. You'll see a small offshoot corridor on your right at the southeastern bend.
• At the end is the Engineering Labs and an elevator. Take the elevator. (Note: If you keep going straight, you'll hit the back door.)
• Instead of going straight at the top of the elevator, take one of the turns. Either will take you around the upper level to the boss: Crowd Pummeler 9-60. He has a chance to drop Lil Smoky Schematic.

Still no dice? Go out the back entrance, reset, and try again.

Fourth Step -- Level engineering to 205 to craft pets.
(If you collect mounts, consider leveling Eng to 375 for the BOP flying mounts while you have the profession. While expensive, the hardcore collectors should definitely consider it.)

I have an incomplete engineering guide, but you can google search for "engineering wow guide" and get some great ones.


1.0 was back when you couldn't get both pets and had to go through your engineering specialization.