History Main / TrueCraftsman

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* ''LightNovel/BeastTamerAndTheCatGirl'': Gantz Storf is a dwarven blacksmith and weapon shop owner in the town Rain lives in. By the time Rain meets him, he's reached a point where seeing his beloved creations be viewed as nothing more than "good weapons" has disheartened him, prompting him to put out worse products with short life cycles that ''look'' good for regular sale, and keep the quality and detailed masterpieces for customers who can spot the difference. This comes back to bite him, as the antagonists in his introductory arc are adventurers he sold his shoddy wares to trying to ruin him by sabotaging his source of the mythril used in his finer creations. Gantz realizes afterward that he was making a big mistake in evaluating his customers the way he had, and resolves to resume making ''all'' of his weapons with the heart and soul he had before.

A character who is not only a skilled artisan, but also known for their complete zero tolerance policy towards cutting corners - they will not, under any circumstance, make a bad boot, a shoddy sword or anything that is not made to the best of their ability. Their work is their pride and joy, and they take great delight in making things that are meant to last from father to son, and maybe beyond.

Put simply, this trope is about when a craftsman takes great pride in his top-quality work, [[DoingItForTheArt seeking to make things of unrivaled quality and detail,]] [[ScrewTheMoneyIHaveRules even at the expense of potential profit made from outputting worse products with short life cycles.]]

Subtrope of ConsummateProfessional.

* ''Manga/DrStone'': Kaseki is sought out by Senku precisely because he is a craftsman of great skill. While Senku and Chrome can devise numerous scientific advances for the Stone World, and Kohaku and the local villagers can provide physical strength and manual labor, none of them are able to do the create the finer pieces of equipment that are required for more advanced machines and devices. Kaseki, though initially distrustful, is wowed by the ideas Senku and Chrome show him, form an IntergenerationalFriendship with the two teenagers, and is regularly fired up by even the most difficult acts of crafting Senku demands, enjoying their difficulty even as he dreads them.

* ''LightNovel/IsItWrongToTryToPickUpGirlsInADungeon'': Welf is from a family that was so good at making swords they were cursed by the Gods to never make another sword again and he's the first one since this not to have the curse. Problem is that he wants to be able to make the best swords possible through sheer skill instead of using his innate gifts, which pisses off most other blacksmiths he runs into because they have to use every single tiny scrap of talent, skill, and inherent gift to the craft everytime they work a forge.

* Welf from [[LightNovel/IsItWrongToTryToPickUpGirlsInADungeon DanMachi]] is from a family that was so good at making swords they were cursed by the Gods to never make another sword again and he's the first one since this not to have the curse. Problem is that he wants to be able to make the best swords possible through sheer skill instead of using his innate gifts, which pisses off most other blacksmiths he runs into because they have to use every single tiny scrap of talent, skill, and inherent gift to the craft everytime they work a forge.

* The Spiritsmith in ''Literature/TheBalancedSword'' by Creator/RykESpoor. He has forged the weapons and armour of most of the gods, and studied his trade for thousands of years, and very much cares about how it is used.

* The toy restorer from ''WesternAnimation/ToyStory2'' is clearly good at his job and insists that "You can't rush art!" to the impatient Al. WordOfGod is that he did the job for free, believing the chance to work on a toy as rare as Woody to be its own reward.

* This is almost always a trait of the Order Masters of the ''Literature/SagaOfRecluce'', beginning with Lerris in the first book, ''The Magic of Recluce''. He's so determinedly perfect in his carpentry that everyone around him is in awe watching him work. And it gets him in trouble when he imbues some of his creations with order... and they're intended for use by [[GoodHurtsEvil masters of chaos.]]

** In ''Literature/GoingPostal'', many of the original clacks engineers were this, and left when the Grand Trunk began taking their maintenance time away so that they could profit more from constant running. Bill Pony is one of the few left, and he has a lot of thoughts about how the people he used to employ wouldn't do shoddy work no matter what you paid them and actually knew what was going on in the clacks system. And it's a major plot point that they were ''not'' just DoingItForTheArt: The new management's insistence on CuttingCorners is ultimately costing them more money than they're saving, because repairing an equipment failure creates far more downtime than a scheduled maintenance period.
** In ''Literature/SoulMusic'', the guitar maker is slowly reduced to a subversion of this after inherently musically-inept people keep buying his guitars after seeing Buddy rock out, ordering his apprentice to haul his old practice guitars out of storage to sell them, eventually just selling metal wire stretched over wood, giggling madly.
** In ''Literature/{{Snuff}}'', the goblins take the crafting of unggue pots '''very''' seriously. One of them, having created one that looks beautiful to both Vimes and Feeney, throws it against the wall in disgust and shame because it didn't meet his own standards.

* In ''Literature/ThePrincessBride,'' Domingo Montoya has the highest standards for himself and the swords he makes. He could be wealthy and renowned, but he doesn't want to make swords that will only be trophies for stupid elites. He is ecstatic at the prospect of making a sword for a six-fingered man - but changes his mind when the six-fingered man sees only a product to buy, not a masterpiece. Domingo leaves his final sword to his son, Inigo.

* ''Series/KamenRiderGaim'' gives us Pierre Oren Alfonso; he may be a BunnyEarsLawyer and a {{Jerkass}} (refusing to hire [[TheHero Kouta]] [[FelonyMisdemeanor because he's an Aquarius]]), but the man is one of the best ''pâtissier'' in the world. He doesn't cut corners, puts his passion into his work, and values his customers' satisfaction above all else[[note]]In one episode he was hired by [[MegaCorp Yggdrasill]] to reclaim Kouta's TransformationTrinket, but thwarted their plans the moment they [[IHaveYourWife tried to attack Kouta's sister]] while she was enjoying some cakes in Oren's shop[[/note]].
** This attitude even extends to arts which Oren ''doesn't'' practice; one of his early KickTheDog moments had him interrupting a Beat Riders performance and [[StopHavingFunGuys chewing them out for being amateur street dancers with no further ambitions]].

* [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hephaestus Hephaestus]] of Myth/ClassicalMythology (also known as Vulcan in the Roman pantheon).

* The toy restorer from ''Film/ToyStory2'' is clearly good at his job and insists that "You can't rush art!" to the impatient Al. WordOfGod is that he did the job for free, believing the chance to work on a toy as rare as Woody to be its own reward.

* The toy repairman from ''Film/ToyStory2'' is clearly a master at his job and insists that "You can't rush art!" to the impatient Al. WordOfGod is that he did the job for free, believing the chance to work on a toy as rare as Woody to be its own reward.

* The toy restorer in ''WesternAnimation/ToyStory2'', who tells an impatient Al that "You can't rush art" and not only fixes Woody's damage, but makes him look brand new.

A character who is not only a skilled artisan, but also known for their complete zero tolerance policy towards cutting corners- they will not, under any circumstance, make a bad boot, a shoddy sword or anything that is not made to the best of their ability. Their work is their pride and joy, and they take great delight in making things that are meant to last from father to son, and maybe beyond.

* Welf from [[LightNovel/IsItWrongToTryToPickUpGirlsInADungeon DanMachi]] is from a family that was so good at making swords they were cursed by the Gods to never make another sword again and he's the first one since this not to have the curse. Problem is that he wants to be able to make the best swords possible through sheer skill instead of using his innate gifts, which pisses off most other blacksmiths he runs into because they have to use every single tiny scrap of talent, skill, and inherent gift to the craft everytime they work a forge.

* The toy repairer in ''WesternAnimation/ToyStory2'', who tells an impatient Al that "You can't rush art."

-->-- '''Bill McDonagh''', ''VideoGame/BioShock1''

-->-- ''VideoGame/BioShock1''

** In ''Discworld/GoingPostal'', many of the original clacks engineers were this, and left when the Grand Trunk began taking their maintenance time away so that they could profit more from constant running. Bill Pony is one of the few left, and he has a lot of thoughts about how the people he used to employ wouldn't do shoddy work no matter what you paid them and actually knew what was going on in the clacks system. And it's a major plot point that they were ''not'' just DoingItForTheArt: The new management's insistence on CuttingCorners is ultimately costing them more money than they're saving, because repairing an equipment failure creates far more downtime than a scheduled maintenance period.
** In ''Discworld/SoulMusic'', the guitar maker is slowly reduced to a subversion of this after inherently musically-inept people keep buying his guitars after seeing Buddy rock out, ordering his apprentice to haul his old practice guitars out of storage to sell them, eventually just selling metal wire stretched over wood, giggling madly.
** In ''Discworld/RaisingSteam'', the young engineer Dick Simnel treats everything related to his locomotive design with utmost seriousness, not least to avoid ending up a cloud of superheated red mist [[PursuingParentalPerils like his father]]. His singleminded focus is infectious, however, and he inspires Ankh-Morpork's first generation of {{Rail Enthusiast}}s.

* In ''VideoGame/BioShock1'', [[TheConsigliere Bill McDonagh]] mentions in an audio log that this trope is what earned him Andrew Ryan's respect (and position as his general contractor). While working as a plumber hired to install Ryan's bathroom plumbing, [=McDonagh=] used brass fittings on the pipes instead of the cheaper tin ones that Ryan had ordered and paid the difference out of his own pocket because he took pride in the fact that none of his work ever leaked.

* ''Film/HighAndLow'': Gondo has worked at the National Shoe Company from age 16, and takes great pride in the quality of their products. So when the CorruptCorporateExecutive trio at the beginning of the film entices him to make lousy shoes that are cheaper to make and would bring the company a lot of money, Gondo refuses, stating that he would not make a bad shoe.

** In ''Discworld/GoingPostal'', many of the original clacks engineers were this, and left when the Grand Trunk began taking their maintenance time away so that they could profit more from constant running. Bill Pony is one of the few left, and he has a lot of thoughts about how the people he used to employ wouldn't do shoddy work no matter what you paid them and actually knew what was going on in the clacks system.

* Durnik in the ''Literature/{{Belgariad}}'' is like this. In one of his first appearances in the novels, he's doing precise finishing work on a minor piece that no one will see.

* In ''Discworld/GoingPostal'', many of the original clacks engineers were this, and left when the Grand Trunk began taking their maintenance time away so that they could profit more from constant running. Bill Pony is one of the few left, and he has a lot of thoughts about how the people he used to employ wouldn't do shoddy work no matter what you paid them and actually knew what was going on in the clacks system.
** In ''Discworld/SoulMusic'', the guitar maker is slowly reduced to a subversion of this after inherently musically-inept people keep buying his guitars after seeing Buddy rock out, ordering his apprentice to haul his old practice guitars out of storage to sell them, eventuallly just selling metal wire stretched over wood, giggling madly.

Put simply, this trope is about when a craftsman takes great pride in his high-quality work, [[DoingItForTheArt seeking to make things of unrivaled quality and detail,]] [[ScrewTheMoneyIHaveRules even at the expense of potential profit made from outputting worse products with short life cycles.]]

* Peter Straub's ''Koko'': The carpenter Conor is working for is such a craftsman, and Conor is learning a lot about house-building. But then the carpenter is obligated to hire on a worthless in-law and Conor has to be let go just in time for him to join the main plotline. [[spoiler:Toward the end of the book, the in-law is divorced from the family and Conor is rehired.]]