Starting Fresh? Some Tips To Make It Easier.

Totally Unrelated Homage To Sylvanas.

 As I have said before, I am trying out new class/race combinations, and I am making them on servers where I haven't played before.  What does this mean for my new little toons?  It means they are responsible for their own finances, their own professions, everything.

Starting out fresh isn't as hard as it used to be.  Most areas have given you an 8 slot and a 6 slot bag for quest rewards by the time you are level 10. I believe every level 10+ area has a multiple profession trainer just waiting to load you up on every possible profession you could want. Mobs are dropping less garbage than they used to.  This all adds up to making it that much easier to follow my first tip:

1. Make a buddy for your intended main character.  Level it to 10, get professions that you are likely to use or that complement your main's, and send it to a major city.  Even if you are a mage and are able to port yourself to a main city, bag space will always be an issue.  This way, you can use mailbox space as storage, as well as the little bit of bank and bag space of your buddy toon. Make sure this buddy has your favorite auction house add on loaded when you log them in, and use them at least once a week.  Many will tell you that Friday before the kids come home from school is the best time to put up auctions.  I believe that so long as you post before you crash Friday night, you will grab a good portion of the weekend crowd, who spend more on the auction house.
2. Sell everything!  Being new to a server, it is best to grab two gathering professions. Now that you are able to track more than one item while you are in the world, you are no longer limited to having one tracked and adding skinning. During the lower levels, I am finding that herbs sell better than ore, probably due to the high cost of converting Cataclysm herbs down to usable low level inks.  There are lots of people out there leveling alts now, so no gathering profession is a loser.  By selling everything, I mean everything.  If you must level your cooking, do it, but try and send raw meats to your buddy when they are no longer a guaranteed skill up.  Gear, even if you think it has good stats, I would send away, too, and live off the quest reward gear.  Don't discount the value of a grey item!  If you are a rogue and pickpocket items with flavor text or that you can read, send them to auction!  If you are on a role playing server, even the grey clothing items could sell.  Sometimes even the starter clothes are worth selling. If you don't want to bother with auctioning grey items, that is fine, but make sure you at least get vendor price for them.  Nothing is sadder than throwing away money when you are scraping together money to train.
3. Buy bigger bags, ASAP.  Nothing hampers questing, and money making, quite like small bags.  You should be revered rather quickly with your home faction.  Near the flight master in each major city is a quartermaster that will sell you a 16 slot bag for 2 gold when you are revered.  This is a large upgrade for a small amount of change.  When you can, upgrade all your bags to netherweave bags (or, if you find them at a good price, traveler's backpacks).  These right now are running as low as 6 gold all the way to as high as 20 gold per server. Look for good deals, and replace when you can. If you hit revered with a second faction before you can afford to fill all your bag slot with 16 slot bags, go to that faction's quartermaster and grab their bag, too. Oh, and don't forget your buddy.  Throwing him a bag every once in a while won't hurt, and will make selling you mountain of loot faster.
4. Be prepared.  If you are starting the day, the dungeon queue, or a long quest chain, empty your bags.  Make sure you have the food, drink, and other items you must have, and repair. Running out of water, bandages, food, and bag space all just slow down your momentum, which slows down your money making.
5. Take a break.  I roll up a buddy character not only for banking, but to level.  Their main base is a main city, but they quest while the main is gaining rested experience.  It helps me keep from tiring of the main character, which is a big help.

That is all I do. Doing this, I have been able to upgrade to 16 slot bags on my hubby's toon, my main toon, my bank toon, and send 100 gold to the guild bank, buy glyphs for both my main and my bank,  train them both in professions and skills, buy mounts for my two toons, and even buy a few materials for my bank toon (who is an engineer), to make a few items she could not gather for herself.

I didn't follow my rule completely on my new server, and I am sure I lost a lot of profit by using the herbs the priest has been gathering to level her alchemy.  I also have lost quite a bit by not selling all the raw ore my engineer is using.  Nevertheless, I am not feeling the pinch, with 16 gold in my bank's pocket and all mounts and bags taken care of with only glyph purchases in the near future, and several auctions waiting to be sold. If you count the bags, glyphs, guild bank gift, and mounts, I have made almost 500 gold on this server, with one toon at 33 and the other at 26. Imagine if I had followed the rules and not decided to level crafting professions?

Titles, Achievements, and Sight Seeing.

This past week has been a fun one.  I have been putzing around with Maura, putting my husband in fear of beating out Hacksoor to 80.  She is a lot of fun, stabbing people and picking their pockets.  I don't know why I never thought to stick with a rogue before this.  I love pick pocketing things.  I got a very pretty rock yesterday, but I forgot to turn off my grey seller.  Out of all the other things I have lifted silently out of pockets and purses, you'd think that I'd have a more valuable favorite.  Other fun things I have been finding are Exotic Cookbooks and Steamy Romance Novels. I must remember to stash away at least one copy of each book I find before the expansion. I can't wait to see what new books are coming!

I want this outfit!

Aside from pick pocketing as many Dark Iron dwarves and Twilight cultists as possible, I have been working on factions with Delgada. Noticing she had about 4,000 reputation until she was exalted with the Maghar, I took her out to kill ogres in Nagrand one session.In holy specialty, I'd run around casting Shadow Word: Pain, then when I had a sizable mob, I'd Holy Nova them down.  I don't think it took me all that long to finish. I didn't manage to capture the moment, but I managed to capture a happy extra achievement reward...

Who needs a sparkle pony, anyhow?

...an albino drake. If you too are interested in Leading the Cavalry, you'll need to gather 50 mounts.  Maghar, or Kurenai for Alliance, is a great reputation to grind for this, as they sell all the talbuk mounts (except the dark ones, which are sold by the vendor in Halaa), a nice chunk of the amount needed to complete the achievement.

The other reputation I found I was close to completing was Cenarion Expedition out in Zangarmarsh.  I needed a little more than 4,000 reputation points,so I decided I would try to solo the Steamvault.  Switching to shadow for a bit more protection, Delgada gulped down a Flask of the Frost Wyrm and stepped through the portal.  For all taht I have been fearful of taking Delgada into level 70 instance alone, she mowed that place down!  It took one full run and a couple short runs (Delgada was kind enough to help someone get the achievement The Lurker Above while she was farming) to hit exalted. This got her yet another achievement...

Seems almost wrong...

...Delgada, Guardian of Cenarius. This is probably one of those titles that just shouldn't be on an undead.  I only wanted the reputation so I could have the privelege to shell out 2000 gold to the Expedition quartermaster for the Cenarion War Hippogryph.  That, too, is an achievement, but I'd do it even if it wasn't.  Since I don't have one yet, I'm borrowing an image from WoWhead.   Why would anyone not want this mount?

 submitted by WoWhead user wolfmusic, this is the special mount action.

Delgada hasn't made any more progress with Loremaster of Kalimdor, which is sad, with all this news of Cataclysm, you'd think I would be in a hurry to finish that.  Instead, Maura is at level 76, doing her own exploring.  Here are some things I never noticed the first time or even the twentieth time I went through Shattered Halls.

Orc statues are everywhere in this instance!

Grand Warlock Nethecurse's room, too.

That's all I have been doing in WoW this week. In Wizard 101, Rowan managed to get a myth pixie and an ice serpent pet, and I brought out Esmee Wyrmblossom to fiddle with a fire wizard for a bit after I got the code for a Galvanic Hammer out of Beckett's Massive Online Gamer magazine.  It is so much easier to level with one of these items, as the 75 damage zero pip spell takes out low level mob sin one or two hits. This is especially handy with a fire wizard, where her first damage spell fizzles 25% of the time.  If you haven't picked up the magazine, it is well worth reading.  The interview with Steve and Leesha from Ravenwood Radio was good, and there are some interesting articles on some upcoming mmos and a sneak peak of the 3rd installment in the World of Warcraft graphic novel series. It would seem that they are in the market for handing out free codes, too, so if you are into AdventureQuest: Worlds, Dragons VS. Robots, or Wonderking, grab yourself a copy for some fun in game items!

Esmee Wyrmblosson, with her 1 day black stallion. Lucky!

Lastly, I bring up Perfect World.  I have been trying, Oh, have I been trying, but I cannot break out of level 21!  The price of death is a loss of a chunk of experience, and it seems right when I am making progress with Delgada the Cleric, I die and lose a good bit of it.  I'm thinking that I may start grinding on low level mobs to possibly get out of this hole I seem to be digging.  Other than that, Delgada has been picking up every low level material she can find and selling them.  We first tried the cat store, which is fine if you don't mind staying logged in to do it.  I find I am still a big fan of the auction house, and I am making money slowly.  Hopefully I will have enough to start doing some gold trading soon.  When that happens, I will be able to play the market, get some gold, and buy some clothing without having to use real money to do it! It is great that this system was instituted for players who have more time than cash.  Once I get started, I may do some research and post on how to work the gold market.

21 forever might be good in real life...

That's all I have for now.  I am looking around for another title to start toward the end of this month.  Sure, I don't have tonnes of time, but I need various forms of escape, and I aim to find a fun vacation home for my summer break!  If you know of any free to play games that I should poke my nose into, comment below!

It's Crunch Time!

I am a little late jumping on the bandwagon to lend my "voice" to the Hearts, Hands, and Voices campaign to raise money for Child's Play charity. To the right of this post you will see the Hearts, Hands and Voices logo. Click on it and it will take you right to the main page for the campaign. Click on the donate button, and give! Child's Play is an excellent charity that buys gaming systems and games for hospitals, helping invalid children to play.

Since this is really the last week, I wanted to chip in an incentive to those that read my blog to donate. Comment below this post to enter a drawing to get a handmade t-shirt with the faction logo of your choice (Horde or Alliance). Pictured below is my first shirt, with the Alliance logo (the picture really doesn't do it justice). The winner will get their choice of shirt color and size, sent to them with my thanks for donating. All I ask is that the chosen winner (or two or three, depending on interest) forward a receipt for their donation. Feel free to black out private information.


Here are my kids modeling different designs (for the Horde!) and colors (lighting is not my strong suit, thhat alliance shirt looks so cool in person!).


Even if this doesn't appeal to you, please, take the time and give. Every dollar helps put happiness in the hands of a sick child. I know I am glad I gave.

Sold!

Money's too tight to mention....

But I just mentioned it. Silly song! In order to help pay a few bills before they became critical, hubby and I listed a few trading cards on eBay. I listed them around the lower end of what everyone was selling them for. I hoped they would sell, but I was kind of skeptical. It's not like the auction house in game, where if you don't sell it, you just re-list it. We needed the money, and I was sure we weren't going to get it.

I was wrong. A couple days into the auctions, I flipped over to our eBay sellers page, and we had sold one! I started packaging it in its promised inner packaging, and checked the delivery instructions. Between the street address and the city, state, and zip code line, the instructions read,"leave by back basement door".

I have been sitting here waiting for something witty to say about the instructions. Something about stereotypical gamers...I got nothing. But the instructions made me giggle. I guess that is enough. Well, the money is nice, too. Thanks for paying my utilities!

What I'm Working On At 80.

Halinka is 80 now, so now comes the time to get money, reputation, and gear. She was fortunate to get into a Heroic Vault of Archavon and a Heroic Obsidian Sanctum on the very day she hit 80. No, she wasn't wearing greens, but everyone else was so well geared, it made her look like she was. She got a nice pair of healing gloves out of the run, and some tokens to spend later. The next day, she started finishing zones. First, she finished Grizzly Hills, then moved on to finish a few group quests in Dragonblight, then it was off to Zul'Drak to work on that zone. She was there for two grueling days. Have I mentioned that Zul'Drak is my least favorite zone? Yes, my banner image is part of a screenshot from that zone, but I took it for the colors. I love the color of the zone, but the area creeps me out. After Halinka got past the feed the zombies quests and defeated Drakuru, the rest of the zone was a cake walk.

So, Halinka is now hanging out in K3, sometimes disguised as a Vrykul, giving her poor gryphon serious back pain. She's about halfway to the gold needed for her first epic flying mount, having purchased the skill just after finishing Zul'Drak. Her daily routine? Cooking and Fishing quests in Dalaran, then Kaluak until she gets tired of the travel between cities (she averages about 2 every day), then off to Sholazar to spend time with her fishy friends. They let her have her first egg to incubate yesterday! After Sholazar, where the yellow dots on her mini map frequently distract her, she heads for Storm Peaks. By then, she is heartily bored of questing, and unloads all the extra stuff into a crate and sends it to her bank to hopefully profit from, then stands until either a quest catches her eye or someone asks her to run something.

I think today, as I fly Halinka to K3, I will join the Looking for Group channel and hope someone whisks me away from the Sons of Hodir quest line. I just hope that Minya, my hunter bank alt, has made enough money to make up the difference and get me a faster mount. (crossing fingers)

Be Good At ONE Thing.

Today, while chatting with some of my new guild mates in the Illuminati Order on Shadowsong, one of them asked for help. "How can I make 60 gold fast?" One of the more seasoned crew spoke up, offering up the dailies on Quel'danas, or really questing in general. Then the question was asked,"Do you have any professions?". Go ahead, friends, guess the answer.

You guessed he said no? You were right. The necessity of having at least one highly skilled profession at 80 was extolled upon. Quests don't last forever, daily quests get monotonous, you don't have the attention span for the intricacies of certain dailies, whatever the reason, you need something to fall back on. Pick flowers, reel in fish, skin the dead animals left behind by someone. You have to do something. I thought about this for some time as I mindlessly cast spells at mountain lions, directed children in needed chores, slathered on calamine lotion, and cried during the end bits of "Beauty and the Beast". You don't necessarily have to be good at any profession that is tracked on your character sheet. You could make some seed money questing, send it to a bank alt of your choice, and make your money buying low and selling high on the auction house, stashing away good deals for opportune moments (small eggs at Christmas, snowballs for year round pet and costum use). You could become the expert wheedler, able to get money out of anyone and make them feel you were doing them the favor. You could charge for your healing or tanking skills (sorry DPS, you are expendable, a dime a dozen, and worth about that to any group) . You could charge lowbies for instance runs. You could run dungeons alone and grab twink level bind on equip gear to sell. You could even run a travel service, complete with in flight meals (yes, mages, that was a poke in your direction). Whatever the case, in order to get into any decent end game, you have to be good at SOMETHING!

So, what are you good at?

Broke...time for the farmers to hit the scene!

I have many characters ready for Northrend. Their chosen professions are at max level, or really close, they have gear that will last them at the very least the first 5 levels, and their bag space has been emptied in preparation. Quests from the old worlds? Dumped.

So, what to do? Delgada has been my focus, being that the guild needs a healer. I am such a pushover. We have our main tank already at 80 running heroics for gear. DPS, well, worth a dime a dozen. So my tank, Shawndra, and her DPS sisters, Carlotta and Maura, sit in the wings, waiting to go in. I think now may be the time to do it.

You see, Delgada is broke. And Rowena is broke. I have siphoned as much as I dare from every one of my 10 alts, and Delgada still has 8 recipes to train from the tailor trainer, and 3 from the enchanting trainer. Expensive...Delgada needs a sugar daddy, or momma, as it may be. I logged Delgada out near a trainer, and brought Maura out of the Undercity to hop the blimp to the Howling Fjord. I'm hoping that the skinning she has, and her pick pocketing, might net a nice stock of cloth and an income Delgada can rely on. She's less than half a level from cold weather flying! There's another 1000 gold she'll need.

I know that if I had just waited until Delgada had some levels under her belt to start her profession leveling, that I wouldn't be in this predicament. But I couldn't wait..the guild needs an enchanter! And a healer! YESTERDAY!! Though, they have asked if I could shoot for Tuesday. I don't think I am that good.

So, here is the plan. Delgada goes out, makes level 77, and logs out after using what cloth and enchanting materials she has to level with. Then, Maura comes out, and starts her questing, spending all sorts of fun time in the starter area, skinning everything with a skin, and sending all her greens, cloth, and gold to Delgada. With any luck, by the time Maura is 73, Delgada will be healthy, still not flying, but at least able to get her professions trained.

The flying carpet will just have to wait.

WoW Economy 101

New to the game? Re-rolling on a new server? Or are you just really bad with money, like I am? Well, since I started my invasion of the other faction, I seem to be making money a whole lot easier than before. Perhaps it is the change in the economy, with high level characters needing low level materials to level up trade skills they never knew they would want (Leatherworking on a priest? Engineering on a protection warrior?). Or perhaps I have learned something in my old age. Maybe it's both. Here I will try and break down how I have made 800 gold before level 40. This number may vary slightly from person to person, but you will have your mount by 30, with change to spare.

1) Never throw anything away...never!

If your bag gets full, vendor the gray items, save the other items until you hit the auction house. If you have old gear that is soul bound, better to sell it to a vendor than to throw it away. A copper saved is a copper earned!

2) Take two gathering professions.

You will have plenty of time at 60+ to level that profession you want. Before raiding, most crafted items aren't worth the raw materials they take to make them. With two gathering professions, you will be funding the high levels crafting needs, and making the money you need for later! I found that skinning and herbalism were a good team, as one is tracked on the mini map while the other you happen upon while you are adventuring.

3) Don't buy gear. Earn it.

Most of the gear you will need you can earn from quest rewards and from lucky drops while questing. The only thing you should buy on the auction house at lower levels is a wand, if you are a class that uses one, and the next item on my list...

4) Bags.

Buy the biggest you can afford. These, if they are the kind that bind on equip, will last you forever. When you get bigger bags, shift the smaller ones to the bank, and sell the ones you replaced on the auction house. The bigger your inventory is, the longer you can stay out in the wilds doing the questing you need to do.

5)Bank.

Maximize your available slots as soon as you can. When you are in a hurry to go to an instance and need space, you can dump your inventory and run, safe from having to toss anything.

That is really all I have done. No bank alt, though having another character on that server to send things to is a good idea if you find yourself into questing, just to send it back when you are ready to auction.

Got any other great ideas on how to make money? I welcome comments!

(after posting the image you might notice Eso is holding on to some mining material. She forgot to return that to Astaani, who has ceased being a bank character and has begun leveling her own gathering professions)