WoW Classic 1.12.1 Lockboxes: All 9 Types, Lockpicking and Loot

Section: Lore & bestiary 5 min read Vanilla 1.12.1 · x5 Updated 26.10.2026

Lockboxes are locked containers that drop from level 20–63 mobs and can only be opened with the Lockpicking skill or one of its substitutes. On WoW x5 everyone who levels picks them up, but not everyone can actually open one — here is every lockbox in 1.12.1, the lock level of each, and how to get at the loot without a rogue in your group.

Lockboxes9 types, locks 1–225

Pick LockRogue ability

Contents

All lockbox types in 1.12.1
Three ways to open a lockbox
Where lockboxes drop
What is inside and is it worth opening
Related pages

All lockbox types in 1.12.1

Vanilla has nine lockboxes. The required Lockpicking skill comes from the Classic tooltips, the mob levels come from our server's loot tables (the bulk of the sources; a few outliers exist). Every lockbox is uncommon (green) quality and does not bind, so you can sell them on the auction house.

Lockbox	Item level	Lockpicking	Mob level	Vendor price
Ornate Bronze Lockbox	20	1	~20–29	50c
Heavy Bronze Lockbox	25	25	~25–34	70c
Iron Lockbox	30	70	~30–39	87c
Strong Iron Lockbox	35	125	~35–44	1s 10c
Steel Lockbox	40	175	~40–49	1s 50c
Reinforced Steel Lockbox	45	225	~45–54	2s
Mithril Lockbox	50	225	~50–59	2s 50c
Thorium Lockbox	55	225	~55–63	3s 75c
Eternium Lockbox	60	225	~60–63	5s

Note that from the Reinforced Steel Lockbox upward every box needs the same 225 skill. The drop chance per mob is a fraction of a percent, so lockboxes are a nice bonus while farming rather than a goal in themselves.

Mithril LockboxItem Level 50LockedRequires Lockpicking (225)Sell Price2s 50c

Three ways to open a lockbox

1. Rogue Pick Lock

Rogues use Pick Lock: a 5 second cast at 5 yards that requires Thieves' Tools, which are never consumed. The skill cap grows by 5 points per character level, so a level 60 rogue can reach 300. How to get the ability and level the skill fast is covered in the lockpicking 1–300 guide, and the rest of the class toolkit is listed on the rogue abilities page.

Pick LockRogueNo cost5 yd range5 sec castTools: Thieves' ToolsAllows opening of locked chests and doors.

2. Blacksmith skeleton keys

Blacksmiths forge single-use skeleton keys. Only a blacksmith with the required profession skill can use them, and the key disappears after a successful unlock. Recipes, reagents and trainers are on the blacksmithing skeleton keys page.

3. Ask a rogue through the trade window

The easiest route for any class. Open a trade with a rogue and put the lockbox into the bottom slot labelled Will not be traded. The rogue casts Pick Lock on that slot, the box stays with you, and you loot it yourself. Many rogues in the capitals do this for a small tip — it also levels their skill.

What about seaforium charges?

They do not work. In 1.12.1 engineering seaforium charges only affect blasting-type locks, which means locked doors — the Small Seaforium Charge tooltip literally says it opens simple locked doors. They have no effect on lockboxes, junkboxes or chests (that changed only in patch 2.1.0), so an engineer with a lockbox in the bags still needs a rogue or a blacksmith.

Method	Class/profession	Max lock level	Cost
Pick Lock	Rogue	300 (5 per level)	Nothing, tools are permanent
Silver Skeleton Key	Blacksmithing 100	25	1 key
Golden Skeleton Key	Blacksmithing 150	125	1 key
Truesilver Skeleton Key	Blacksmithing 200	200	1 key
Arcanite Skeleton Key	Blacksmithing 275	300	1 key
Trade window	Any + rogue	Same as the rogue	Nothing

Where lockboxes drop

Lockboxes are part of the general loot of hundreds of creatures of the right level — humanoids, undead, demons, beasts. There is no dedicated lockbox farm: the more mobs of the right level you kill, the more boxes you collect. A good example is the Syndicate in the Alterac Mountains, who drop Iron and Strong Iron Lockboxes.

Baron Vardus of the Syndicate (level 40) — drops the Strong Iron Lockbox

Syndicate Footpad (level 32–33) in the Alterac Mountains — a source of the Iron Lockbox

Similar locked boxes are what a rogue pulls from mob pockets — those are junkboxes, with their own line of locks. Static chests in dungeons and the open world are covered in the locked chests reference.

What is inside and is it worth opening

According to our server's loot tables the contents are:

almost always one item — green armor or a weapon of the box's level (around item level 20–30 for bronze boxes, up to 60 for mithril);
sometimes blue items, gems (Moss Agate, Star Ruby, Aquamarine), cloth or herbs;
recipes — the Mithril Lockbox can hold, for example, Schematic: Sniper Scope, Plans: Whitesoul Helm or Pattern: Mooncloth Vest;
bags — the Mithril and Thorium Lockboxes have about a 5% chance for a Journeyman's Backpack or a Traveler's Backpack;
no coins — unlike junkboxes.

Bottom line: always open them. A vendor pays pennies for a closed box, while the green item inside sells for more or can be disenchanted. If your group has a rogue, ask through the trade window; if not, rogues and blacksmiths buy lockboxes on the auction house to level their skill. For more income ideas see the gold farming guide.

Want to open every lockbox you find yourself? Roll a rogue on WoW x5 — register and connect to the server in a couple of minutes.

FAQ

How do I open a lockbox without a rogue?

There are two working options. A blacksmith can use a skeleton key: Silver opens locks up to 25, Golden up to 125, Truesilver up to 200 and Arcanite up to 300. The other option is to ask any rogue and put the box into the Will not be traded slot of the trade window.

What Lockpicking skill does a Mithril Lockbox need?

The Mithril, Thorium and Eternium Lockboxes in 1.12.1 all need the same 225 Lockpicking as the Reinforced Steel Lockbox. A rogue reaches that cap at level 45.

Can a seaforium charge open a lockbox in 1.12.1?

No. In Vanilla 1.12.1 engineering seaforium charges only blast locked doors. Opening chests and lockboxes with charges was added in patch 2.1.0, which is already The Burning Crusade.

What drops from lockboxes?

According to our server database a lockbox almost always holds one item: green armor or a weapon of the box level, sometimes a blue item, a gem or a recipe. Lockboxes contain no coins, and the Mithril and Thorium boxes occasionally hold a bag.