Before MoP was announced, I made a thread about Runemasters being the next class in WoW. Well as we all know now, the new class became Monks, but a lot of my arguments for Runemasters was used to justify the existence of a Monk class. You can read the thread here;
http://www.mmo-champion.com/threads/...w-class-in-WoW
I feel that I was spot on in most of those arguments. The main reason I was incorrect is because I believed that Blizzard would use Runemasters instead of Monks to try to be bit different. So now let's see why the Tinker is the best bet for the next WoW class:
Why this class?
1.They could wear mail armor, filling out the Mail classes. They could even wear INT mail, so that Shaman wouldn't be the only ones utilizing that type of armor.
2.They could use guns and/or bows. Currently, only Hunters use such weapons. Also Tinkers could fulfil the desire of many players to have a pet-less physical ranged class.
3. The game already possesses a technological/steam punk edge that isn't utilized by any of the classes. Engineering helps, but Engineering is a crafting skill, and the entire profession amounts to crafting mounts, armor, and weapons, not utilizing offensive and defensive abilities.
4. There are units and hero units from WC3 that utilize Tinker abilities. The Goblin Tinker, like the Pandaren Brewmaster, could be the basis for an entire class. Also the Tinker has an extensive history in WoW RPG games.
5. The Tinker would be unlike any other class currently in the game. There is literally no other class in the game that would be anything like the Tinker class.
6. Almost any race could be a Tinker. Unlike DH or Warden ideas, any race could study engineering and technology.
7. Like Monks, Tinkers can fit into any expansion, so Blizzard has plenty of flexibility with where and when to implement the class.
8. Tinkers can fill any group role. DPS, Tanking, or Healing works great with the Tinker class, again adding to its flexibility in terms of implementation.
Of course there are arguments against Tinker as a new class, but most of those are from people who are against new classes in general. However, the main argument against this class is that it's too much like the profession Engineering. As mentioned before, Engineering is a crafting skill. A Tinker class would use offensive and defensive abilities. Also there's plenty of room within this class idea to make things very different from the Engineering profession. Also any engineer will tell you that the offensive abilities are more for laughs than actual use.
Well, there's my argument. You read about my ideas for the actual Tinker class here;
http://www.mmo-champion.com/threads/...ss-idea-Tinker