However, it’s when you move on to selecting your profession, the first hints at Shadowlands’s depth appears. AO’s 14 professions (two of which are exclusive to Shadowlands) decide which skills you will advance in best. While they do not impose any large restrictions, they make advancing in certain skills less expensive. In other words, there is still plenty of room for character customization (and you always have the option to create a new character). Of course, as with any good RPG, certain classes (professions) are harder to start with but pay off big should you stick with them. AO is very upfront about this so that you’ll not go jumping into the world as a “noob” only to find yourself being clawed to death by the proverbial MMORPG bunny.