20 Minute JP Run

Since I'm farming Justice Points for my toons now (none of whom have really been made Raid Ready yet), getting a fast run here and there has been my goal.

One of my tank buddies was free so my son grabbed his healer (pushing hard to get to 85 before he leaves for college Sunday) and we queued RDF.

Vortex Pinnacle is not one of my favorite dungeons but when it popped our tank said "let's try to knock this out quick". I grabbed the stopwatch, hit start and said "go".

We were off and running--literally. The tank went on a dead sprint. He chain pulled every group. Before we could burn down one set of trash he was off to the next set. We stopped only twice in the whole instance--both times to rez a fallen comrade. Never once did Chavon have to stop for mana. Pro heals from my boy!

Result? A 20:37 run.

You might have had a faster run. Please tell us about it if you have. Definitely, this was a record for me. 

About Damn Time: Gold Capped At Last

All I can say is "woot" and "thank god". 

I was chasing the final 75k gold or so since Thursday. Finally Sunday I just said "screw it" and decided to camp the AH all day. Result was a 40K gold day and this final tally when I opened my mail one last time around 1:10 am server time. 

Please Don't Abuse Your Guildies

I don't have a great computer. It was pretty awesome about 3 or 4 years ago but now it is barely able to keep up. For WoW this means low FPS and long load times. I don't do 25 mans because the video lag is so bad. Hell, some 10 mans are unplayable.

Occasionally when I log on, as soon as the load screen disappears and I can see my character, I will notice other players attempting to interact with me. Might be a group invite, or a wsp, or some guild chat comment. 

Such was the case last Saturday afternoon when I logged my Warlock, Teimsar. He is a max Scribe/Tailor, and it was time to restock some Spellthread and bag options. 

PUG Loot Solution

One of the biggest frustrations I have faced in the last month has been the Random Dungeon Finder. 

I took the last month off from the AH to work on my alts. I rolled an Orc Mage and leveled her to 85. I have been working on my main server alts, gearing them, running dungeons. Then I focused on my Druid (now 85) and my Shaman (also 85 now).


We all know the RDF system is fucked up. Blizzard knows it too, bribing tanks to get them to run more randoms. The Satchel of Medoicre Goods is not enough to help this situation a lot. Bottom line: tanks get insta-queue, healers (like my Shaman) get fairly good times, and DPS get screwed. 

Saving Time With Trade Skill Master

I have never been a big fan of Trade Skill Master. My original perception was that it was hard to learn, offered limited flexibility and was geared primarily to Glyph production and maintenance of Glyph auctions. Since I wasn't active in Glyph sales I shied away from TSM.

My opinion hasn't changed that much. However, I did decide to try my hand at Glyphs since I know all but 4 of the patterns. So far, TSM has proven very useful in both producing Glyphs and maintaining their auctions. It was fairly cumbersome to learn but has proven surprisingly nimble in managing Glyph auctions as well as my other regular postings.

Today I stumbled upon an application for TSM that proved a huge time savings for me. It may also help you make more gold by reducing needless AH searches.

Shopping For Value

Whether you are an Enchanter looking to craft scrolls or you are a goblin looking to turn a quick profit, buying gear to Disenchant for materials has always been a good way to generate Enchanting materials for resale or personal use.

Don't overlook the recent price spikes in Greater Celestial Essences and Heavenly Shards.

Gold Advice for a New Friend

We all know how horribly disappointing it can be to run PUGs. You never know if you will get the guild group with 4/5 on vent and running at top speed or the noob group with the tank that just specc'd and (like I had last week) has a mixture of DPS and PvP gear--without a single piece of tank gear at all.

Today I was fortunate to find a super cool group with solid DPS, a great Tank and almost pro Heals. (I was healer btw, lol). The group got along so well that we all exchanged REAL IDs and have friended each other for future runs.


During one bout of down time between runs, Fenrisulfr (Vashj) and I struck up a conversation about gold. This post is dedicated to Fenri with tips for him--but it applies to so many players today that I hope all my readers will enjoy it. (Or should I say both of my readers? lol)

Geruk (Velun US) Steps Up: For The Horde!!!

Yesterday I needed a break from the gold grind.

I went to a random server (almost random, anyway) and rolled up a Female Orc Mage. Why? Several reasons: never played an Orc, very little Horde experience at all, and mages really rock.

I met a totally cool player who reinforced my bias that awesome people are everywhere in WoW.

750k Gold: New Milestone, New Observations

I'm a few days delinquent in publishing this post. I hit 750k on May 20 just before bed, during my last mail sweep of the evening. I meant to get this post out for Tuesday but life intervened. 

Some interesting trends have recently become obvious to me, and hopefully these observations will help you in your gold acquisition efforts.

Remember to Blog Responsibly!

OK, I admit it.

I'm old.

You young whippersnappers with your Tweets and your Internets and You Tube and such.....you just confuse me.

I don't Tweet because I don't think anything I'm doing RIGHT NOW is just so damn interesting that you or anyone else would need or want to know about it.

I don't Facebook because everyone I want to talk to is either living in the same house with me or available via telephone or email when I need to communicate.

It mystifies me as to why anyone would want to publish private info like a birthday, likes and relationship status on the Internet. Anyone can see it. Forever.

Forget the stories about employers not hiring people because of what was on their Facebook page. Forget the stories about employers firing people because of pictures on Facebook.

Whatever you put out there in the cyberworld is there forever.

I vividly recall when email became the new "IN" thing in the business world. My employer actually published guidelines on how to write and send an email. I wish I had saved the booklet.

It contained priceless stuff like "write your email formally as if you were writing a business letter" and "never send an angry email; instead, save it and come back the next day to make sure it still makes sense". Oh, and the very important "facial expression and voice tone do not translate well in an email. You might mean to be funny but the recipient might be offended."

I guess no one had invented "lol" yet.

Anyway, there have been some very public disputes lately in the gold blog community. I'm not going to re-hash them or link them here. If you are reading this email I'm sure you linked here at some point from one of these sites.

One blogger is miffed about a program another blogger started that seemed to flame out or fail somehow. Another blogger jumps in to defend one party or the other. Soon after, yet another blog pipes in defending the first one.

The reason I don't get Facebook and Twitter is the very same reason these disputes are so depressing.

Privacy.

My generation believed in discussing things "man to man" (or "face to face" if the masculine image is somehow not PC here).

Have a problem with your boss? Don't email him. Knock on the door, go inside and talk it out. Have trouble with your gf or bf? Don't break up on Twitter--go out, discuss it and if you have to end the relationship, do so with some dignity.

Some things should just be said privately. If I have a problem with a blogger's topic, I really think about the comment process. I still don't "email mad".  (Most of the time) If my comment looks like it is going to rile someone up then I hit "cancel" and send an email. Or, I don't comment at all.

Today I broke that rule and made a public comment on a blog. I thought I was defending a fellow blogger who I perceived had been disparaged by name. I felt a public slight should be called out publicly.

That was wrong of me. I should have handled it privately. I let my emotions get the best of me and only made things worse.

If you are reading this and you know who you are, please accept my apologies. I have already sent emails but wanted to address this topic, well, on a bigger scale.

So, next time you get ready to Tweet or Facebook or whatever you young folks do give it a second. Wait. See if your comment really advances the discussion or only becomes a diversion into a new, unintended and horribly wrong direction.

Had I taken my own advice I don't think this whole issue would have blown up.

Demand Side Economics

Goblins require that someone "need" our items. We can supply all we want but if no one is buying what we list, we don't make any gold.

We often look at gold earning through this lens--"what can I supply that will sell for a profit?"

We might even ask, "Of all the things I can possibly sell that will earn a profit, what can I list that will make the best profit in the shortest time?"


These questions frame the analysis from a supply standpoint. Let's quickly look at this picture with the demand lens to see if additional ideas are discovered, and if so, if they are helpful.

Best. Week. Ever. ((4.1, Oh How I Love Thee, Let Me Count the 77,000 Ways))

Prior to 4.1's drop I prepared to move away from gold earning and return more to game playing. The mindset is different. Go cold turkey? Nah, that's a recipe for disaster. Gradually wean off the golden teat? Seemed more realistic but requires more willpower--something I have been known to lack in the past. 


Somewhere in the middle....gradual reduction in AH time coupled with more dungeons and questing....that should do it.


Seems like a plan.....then by Saturday the whole thing went to hell. I was back to full-on AH activity. The result?


Best. Week. Ever.

Quick Tip: WoLK Enchanting Materials

If your server is like mine, finding Infinite Dust and Greater Cosmic Essence can be a real pain. The AH prices of Infinite Dust are 6g-8g each and GCEs are going for 15g and up. Sometimes one can find WoLK greens for cheap enough to buy and DE for your own materials but just about everyone is onto this tip, so it is hit or miss. Mainly miss for me lately.

I found that the most economical way to make something to "farm" and DE for my own Infinite Dust and GCE is Shadowmight Ring. It is a L162 ring that DEs into 4-10 Dust (75%) or 1-3 GCE (20%). There is a 5% chance for a Dream Shard.

Materials are 1 each Eternal Earth and Eternal Shadow. The recipe is taught by any JC trainer at skill level 390. 

On my server, the Eternal Earth go for about 9g and the Shadow for about 17g. If you buy them at these prices the margins are close to break even, but can be a fall back method for making your own mats if the AH is either sold out or too expensive. 

Today, I still came out ahead. I buy Earths and Shadows any time I see them at a good price. I bought 45 Earth today for 3g each and 80 Shadow for 7g-9g each. 

I made and DE'd 45 Shadowmight Rings and received: 238 Infinite Dust, 18 GCE and 1 Dream Shard.

From an availability standpoint this option worked great. I couldn't find any GCE in the AH and I needed 15 for crafting scrolls for resale. The Infinite Dust in the AH was very pricey at the time, and limited--only 5 stacks at 140g per stack. 

From a pure gold earning standpoint this would be a very profitable effort as well. My initial investment was 495g (45 Earth at 3g each--135g--and 45 Shadow at 8g each--360g). At market price of 6g, the 238 Infinite Dust would be worth 1,428g. The GCE would be worth 234g at the usual price of 13g each. 

That would have been 1,167g profit for about 5 minutes work. [((1,428+234)-495) = 1,167].

So whether you need a way to generate Infinite Dust and GCE for your WoLK recipes, or you need a good way to earn some gold by making and re-listing these materials, the Shadowmight Ring might be a good option for you. Buy the materials for the right price and the profits are decent. Even at market rates you can keep your business going if the WoLK mats are in short supply.

500k Gold Milestone and General Thoughts

Woot!

I hit 500,000g on April 15 after flirting with it for a week. I could have banked 500k a lot sooner but kept getting distracted.

I got to 490k then decided to train Engineering for my Shaman. That took a few thousand gold. I crept back up to 490k-ish and began playing Rift more and more, leaving my AH toon with hundreds of expired auctions mid-week. Soon thereafter I got to 495k but spent a few thousand to get all the Blacksmithing recipes. Finally, on when my Warlock hit 85 and I needed to upgrade his gear to do heroics so there went another few thousand for Dreamcloth and other gear.

Eventually, I just said "screw it" and pushed on through. 

Nesingwary Success Story: From Beggar to Goblin in a Day

I was monitoring trade chat the other day looking for good deals when I noticed a player (who I shall call 'beggar') yelling "Can someone please give me 25g? I really need it."

I watched as the usual trolling occurred. 

"Get a job." 

"Go quest somewhere like I did." 

"If you can find me in Twilight Highlands I'll give you 50g." 

There were some 'more colorful' replies as well.

I sent a private tell, however. "I'm not going to give you any gold but I can teach you how to make your own."


"Really," he replied, "how much will that cost me?"


"Nothing", I answered. "All for free."


"Kk. I'm all ears."

April 15 Blogger Challenge--Don't Forget

Don't forget--the April 15 Blogger Challenge is coming up. If you write a blog and want to participate just publish your "Server Success Story" on 4/15. 

Based on the comments from the original post this may be a non-event. 

Gemmageddon and the 4.1 Horsemen of the Jewel-pocalypse

Warning! This post contains imagery that may offend some people. If your religious views are so strong that you may become upset at a humorous view of God, WoW and Blizzard please do not read any further.

________________________________________

April 15 Gold Blogger Challenge: Server Success Stories

First things first: this is not a Carnival. JMTC and Cold's Gold Factory both do a super job with monthly theme-related posts. Instead, this challenge is designed to illustrate via real in-game examples how our gold tips can help a total stranger.

Interested? Read on......

Leatherworking Can Be Profitable

I met a guy in trade chat the other day, Garahadar, who was looking for someone to Enchant a weapon. His materials, small tip. I think it was Mending but I don't remember now. We struck up a conversation. Seems his situation is very similar to Phuggly's: needs to earn gold and has little working capital now. 

I gave Garahadar some basic tips--quick hits, if you will. Then I offered to construct this post to help him with ideas about how Leatherworking might be an income generator. 


The more I worked on this last night, the more I began to question whether this profession has any serious gold making potential. I decided that Leatherworking can be profitale but the old strategies may not work today.Moreover, the application might be more appropriate for non-Goblins.

Auctioneer Help Anyone?

I am a longterm Auctioneer user. I have noticed that since Cataclysm release the data files seem to be more bloated. I need to perform the dreaded /auc clearscan all .

I'm looking for some answers which I can't seem to locate anywhere, including the Auctioneer site.

If I clear all the data, will my Skillet and MySales data go away too? Is there a way to preserve sales data that is used by these addons and still remove all the data Auctioneer has warehoused?

Skillet keeps very useful stats on how many of an item I have sold and for how much total revenue. This info is super useful in determining if I need to make some irregular item to sell.

Any thoughts out there? I love Auctioneer but losing all this valuable info every time I have to "clear the decks" seems like a very big sacrifice.

Keystone Enchanting Materials

I was in high school when I first read Extinction: The Causes and Consequences of the Disappearance of Species by Paul and Anne Ehrlich. It was an epiphanous experience. One of the most stirring images described by the Ehrlichs was that of the Keystone Species. 

Within any ecosystem there are species that are so integral that their extinction would cause the entire ecosystem to crash. Removing Ochre Stars from the coastal California marine ecosystem would lead to an explosion of mussels, whose proliferation would crowd out all the fish, sea lions and eventually the coral beds. The Ochre Star is a Keystone Species for that ecosystem.

Within WoW there are certain Enchanting materials that similarly hold the key to ensuring the stability of their relative ecosystems. My purpose here is to identify three such materials and to give strategies for controlling those materials to maximize your gold earning opportunities.

Phuggly's Phinancial Dilemma: Quick Update

Phuggly gave me the head's up that he has earned about 1,500g in the last few days. Hell of a jump from 2g, eh? He didn't want to get into a lot of specifics (and also asked to keep his secrets....well, secret). I asked him to consider authoring a post with some thoughts on what has worked and what hasn't--he said he will consider it.

About the only thing I can tell you is that he definitely used SOME of the suggestions but not all of them. 

More on this topic as conditions warrant. At this pace, he may be flying around Northrend by the end of the week!

Gratz Phug! 

Leveling is Fun Again

Although this is a departure from the usual "here's how to make more gold in WoW" post, in the end it may proved to cover that topic as well. Given the infrequency of my posts I suppose one could say the word "departure" implies that I post a lot. OK, fair enough.

However, I was motivated by a pm from The Gold Queen over at Goldcastles. She linked my site to her blogroll so I figured some new content should follow. 

/cracks knuckles....So here goes.....

Phuggly's Phinancial Dilemma: A Gold Making Business Plan

I'm submitting this for JMTC's April Carnival......seems right on point for their topic.
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Met a player today via trade chat. Super nice guy. He was selling some Primals, which I buy whenever the price is right. They are great for flipping, can be useful in crafting and if nothing else can be turned into Primal Might which sells for around 325g per unit.

Phuggly and I began chatting. ((and he gave permission to use his screen name)). Seems he was trying to raise gold for Cold Weather Flying. He was very candid in describing the challenge he faced in raising enough gold for basic needs. Left with 2g to his name after Cold Weather Flying, his next goal is Artisan Riding for 4,500g. During our conversation I explained how earning gold could be made easier if he were to use some resources, i.e.--blogs, that could help him in this pursuit.

I learned that Phuggly is his highest level character. He has L400 Mining and L281 Blacksmithing. With these limitations I know it will be hard to raise the capital he needs. I couldn't really think of a post that addressed this specific situation--he's not brand new, but he doesn't have a lot of experience or access to professions. I decided that it would be helpful to Phug (and I'm sure other players) to have a guide for this situation.

The result is this post. Read more below the fold

I'm Famous Now!!

Since the time I hit my 250k gold threshold and wrote the interview below, I have now hit 350k.....500k on the way!

http://www.warcraftecon.net/?p=3970

How To Lose Money and Piss Off People With Jewelcrafting

I managed to get a bunch of Obsidium Ore the other day for 65g/stack. I hadn't had time to prospect it until tonight, partly because I've been leveling my Warlock and Druid and partly because the monotony of button mashing the macro 200+ times was just daunting enough a task to make me find something else to do. Actually, to find anything else to do.

I got home later than normal from work. I was in a bad mood because traffic sucked. The sleet and snow flurries persisted all day and made the whole day gray and gloomy. By the time we got dinner out of the way and other family issues addressed it was almost 8pm--and I had yet to run any of my daily quests. I knocked them out quickly and decided that spamming the macro was about all I wanted to tackle. No thought required, just press the button and watch TV. Boring. Depressing.

Thus my mood was sour for a number of reasons. Reading the banal trade banter just made it worse. About the only positive I could grasp at this point was the prospect of transmuting a bunch of Shadowspirit Diamonds and cutting some Burning and Reverberating gems. I sell 2-4 of each every day. Burning goes for about 325g and Reverberating for about 575g, up to 600g. I'm still missing Agile, but remain on the lookout.

So there I sat, in a funk, pressing the number "1" over and over, just waiting to get my gems so I could transmute, cut and list my Metas. I noticed a player asking in trade for a JC with Bold Inferno Ruby and Reverberating Shadowspirit cuts.

Oh boy! I can make some quick gold!!

Boy was I wrong.

New Tanks Need New Gear

The inspiration for this post comes from a recent vent discussion with a guildie. He lamented the constant struggle to accrue gold. He wants Epic Flight but can't afford it. He has one L85 toon with Mining and Blacksmithing but he hasn't maxed either and doesn't have any other professions available. He is still in the Cobalt phase of leveling Mining and Blacksmithing.

I suggested making a circuit through Northrend for Cobalt or even Hellfire for Fel Iron as a quick fix. Both types of ore are selling well. Since he hates to mine he would prefer some way that minimizes the time he uses that fancy pick-axe.

So the question that seems most relevant for him is 'how can I best earn gold in this situation'?

Paper or Plastic? Bag Sales Are Up

During Wrath, I eschewed making any Netherweave Bags. They were selling for about 7g and the materials were around 5g. For the time it takes to make them I didn't think the return was sufficient. About a month into Cataclysm prices were up to 15g to as high as 20g and the materials held pretty close to Wrath levels. This made Netherweave Bags worth my time.

I sold over 300 Netherweave Bags in January at an average price of 16g. This translated into an average profit of 10g per bag. 3,000g profit in this one niche was pretty nice. There were about 5 major sellers in this space and I suspect we all did fairly well.

Netherweave Bags are back to being crap again because some jackoff decided he wants to own this market for 11g per bag. He lists 75 Netherweave bags at a time. Materials have climbed up to 7g-9g. These margins were not sustainable for me in Wrath and they aren't now either. Lol, he's probably writing a blog somewhere about how he has monopolized this market!

It wasn't really worth my time or energy to fight for this market space. If the seller has sufficient materials stockpiled to keep it up, good for him. He can make his 11g a bag all day long.

However, I needed a new market, and I think I've found it. Two markets, actually.

In Memory of a Friend: We Will Miss You Trixie

Our Friend Trixie--7/4/200 to 2/17/2011

Today our family said "goodbye" to the oldest of our three dogs. Trixie had been a member of our pack since 2001. 

If you are hoping this somehow digresses into a gold post, hate to disappoint but it will not. 

New Meta Gem Pattern: Tough Lesson(s) Learned

credit: www.uhnd.com

Playing on my Pally last night, who has max JC and Ench, trying to decide what Meta pattern to buy with my 4 Jewelcrafter Tokens. Thought it might be a good time to use The Undermine Journal to see what patterns were selling well. 

When Does Herb Farming Makes Sense?

If you are one of the four or five regular readers of my blog then you know how much I hate to farm anything. Herbs have to be the worst though. For whatever reason I find the mechanic of clicking the flower much less appealing than the other animations. Miners get to swing a pick axe and skinners get that cool sound of flesh being separated from hide. Herbalists? They just kneel in the mud.

But the question remains: when is herb farming a good choice?

Target 250,000 Gold? Success!!

I guess I could have hit this a few days ago but I didn't want to alter my normal buy/sell cycles. I managed to hit 250,519g before bed last night.

How's Your RAK?

http://www.monsterwhitetailbuck.com/boone-and-crockett-scoring-system/

Back in November I posted about how Azeroth could be improved by Random Acts of Kindness (or RAKs). This led to a fairly robust discussion (for my meager blog) about how others were addressing this already.  I was pleasantly surprised. However, shortly thereafter I quit blogging regularly due to personal issues and never revisited the idea.

I thought today was a great time to give a quick update and encourage all of you to perform some RAKs on your own.

OGOD! OGOD! OGOD!--GIVE ME THAT TOOL!!! (and no, that's NOT what she said)

This is about tools. Not that kind. Get your mind out of the gutter.

This is about the tools we use as goblins. Our add-ons are the picks and shovels that Miners use or the flasks that Alchemists use. Our add-ons keep our lives nice and neat--and give us information that we need as goblins.

I want to throw a shout out to Sterling over at The Consortium for the Feb. 3 article Pliaksi's Goblin Crafter Spreadsheet and to Altolycus at ALTO's Gold"ish" Advice: The Worst WoW Blog Ever! for his Feb. 1 article Alto vs. OreCrusher: The Death Match. I highly suggest you read both articles and especially the comments as background before you read this.

Kammler's WoW Triangle of Hierarchical Needs: An Answer to the JMTC Gold Carnival

Kammler's Wow Triangle of Hierarchical Needs

JMTC posts its list of Carnival entries in order of receipt. Which means you are reading this because you either started at the bottom and went up (unlikely) or you are reading every post (possible). Or you still seek some new nugget of information to satiate your ravenous hunger for earning gold (more likely).

No matter why you are reading, you deserve a different perspective--something new, unique--a fresh look at this topic. Look no further: I guarantee you have never seen this topic addressed this way.

King Arthur and Opportunity Cost

One of my favorite movies is the 2004  King Arthur (Clive Owen, Keira Knightley) Not only is it told with an interesting twist on the Arthurian legend but it also contains one of my favorite movie scenes of all time.

Arther and his knights are escorting a Roman noble and his family to safety ahead of the invading Saxons. They must complete this task to earn freedom from their servitude to Rome. In his benevolence, Arthur chooses to escort the noble's vassals in the evacuation. This act of kindness slows their escape dramatically--what with oxen pulling carts, elderly and nearly crippled peasants and the only horses belonging to Arthur and his knights.

Unencumbered and hungry for a fight the Saxons march all night and at a much more war-like pace. Finally, the Saxons are nearly upon Arthur and the procession as the escape route runs smack into a frozen lake in the mountain pass. With no way around, they must cross it--slowly, because the combined weight of too many knights in one spot may crack the ice and plunge them to their deaths.

Arthur sends the noble and the remaining procession forward to Hadrian's wall whilst he and his knights stand to battle the Saxons upon the frozen lake. Outnumbered 25-1, the knights prevail with only one casualty.

But what does this have to do with opportunity cost?

Treading Water

Cataclysm has been out about 8 weeks now. So far I have managed to join a great raiding guild, level my 3 main playing toons to 85, level my professions so I have max or near max in most categories and had great success in earning gold. So why do I feel like I'm spinning my wheels?