Originally Posted by
Thagrynor
All of those things contribute to the lore around Tinkers existing, that they are a part of the world and that they are much more fleshed out than simply a statement of "some folks use mechanical stuff." The teams in the Islands really show that they are fleshing out potential abilities, "specs", roles, etc that could be easily adapted into a full class. Mekkatorque has abilities that, to a lesser degree, could be adapted into player class abilities.
Additionally, Mekkatorque alone being a more prominent part and his death could spark a response of a "The High Tinker has perished. We need more Tinkers to heed the call and join us in avenging our King!" kind of call to action for the Gnomes, while the Goblins would see them mobilizing and train more in response. Thus, both races would have them. Add in Dwarves and Vulpera, maybe Dark Iron and maybe Mag'har (Iron Horde esque), and you have a bunch of races that could then become Tinkers.