This will be my last post, I wanted to thank all my readers and everyone whoever commented on one of my posts. I got to the point where I had more gold coming in then I could spend, and the challenge became boring. I sent all my in game wealth to my sister and taught her how to make as much gold as she wants, but considering the amount of gold I sent over, I am not sure she will ever need to.
At the moment I have decided to focus more on my real life, and I am waiting to see if the bid I put on a house goes through. If so I will be spending my time making money in the real world to pay off my purchase. If not I think I will be looking at starting a business to try and apply all those college accounting and business investing classes to good use.
Goodbye, and farewell till we meet again.
Miy
Read more!
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Saturday, June 20, 2009
So your Rich. Now What?
What should you do with all that gold sitting in your bank account? Here are 10 suggestions.
Well you have bought sold and conquered and now sit on an overflowing pile of gold. What do you do with it?
To be honest, Blizzard has gone out of their way to make sure there wasnt much to spend your gold on. I really wish they had actually come out with the whole pimp your mount system. I would have dropped 30k gold to make my travelers mammoth a 310% flying mount. So what can you do?
1. Collect Mounts!
I am sitting just under 80 myself at the moment.
2. Buy BOE epic Ulduar Gear
I have three pieces and am planning on getting another three (an odd work schedule makes it hard to be on a raid team)
3. Make a twink
I have already dropped a little over 2k to gear my 49 mage. (a large chunk went to rep items for ZG)
4. Bypass the Hodir rep grind
It cost me about 2k to skip this. I hate repeating a quest more than once or twice.
5. Collect Vanity Pets.
Not my thing but hey some people like it.
6. Buy the Travelers Mammoth.
Hey those vendors are awesome. I didnt even wait to get my rep up to buy it myself.
7. Buy a Motorcycle
This isnt a steam punk game・why the ^#%$ would you want a motorcycle・whatever.
8. Buy a run through Ulduar
If you cant get in on a regular raid this might work for you.
9. Buy your twilight/black drake.
It is a 100% drop; you just need a group that knows what it is doing and the gold to pay them to let you have it.
10. Finance a guild/raid team
Gevlon seems to be doing this to great success, it costs him 5k a week, but the benefits are nice.
I wish there was more.
. Read more!
Well you have bought sold and conquered and now sit on an overflowing pile of gold. What do you do with it?
To be honest, Blizzard has gone out of their way to make sure there wasnt much to spend your gold on. I really wish they had actually come out with the whole pimp your mount system. I would have dropped 30k gold to make my travelers mammoth a 310% flying mount. So what can you do?
1. Collect Mounts!
I am sitting just under 80 myself at the moment.
2. Buy BOE epic Ulduar Gear
I have three pieces and am planning on getting another three (an odd work schedule makes it hard to be on a raid team)
3. Make a twink
I have already dropped a little over 2k to gear my 49 mage. (a large chunk went to rep items for ZG)
4. Bypass the Hodir rep grind
It cost me about 2k to skip this. I hate repeating a quest more than once or twice.
5. Collect Vanity Pets.
Not my thing but hey some people like it.
6. Buy the Travelers Mammoth.
Hey those vendors are awesome. I didnt even wait to get my rep up to buy it myself.
7. Buy a Motorcycle
This isnt a steam punk game・why the ^#%$ would you want a motorcycle・whatever.
8. Buy a run through Ulduar
If you cant get in on a regular raid this might work for you.
9. Buy your twilight/black drake.
It is a 100% drop; you just need a group that knows what it is doing and the gold to pay them to let you have it.
10. Finance a guild/raid team
Gevlon seems to be doing this to great success, it costs him 5k a week, but the benefits are nice.
I wish there was more.
. Read more!
Monday, June 15, 2009
AhTrader podcast #9
Notes on what i plan to podcast for my guild on the next segment.
Why you might not be making as much gold as you think.
Almost everyone here has been in economics 101, so you should remember the story about two men. Man A can produce 4 pizzas or 2 sodas in a day; man B can produce 1 pizza or 4 sodas a day. If each man spent half their time producing pizza and soda, man A would have 2 pizzas and 1 soda each day, and man B would have half a pizza and 2 sodas each day. But if they specialized and traded, each man could have 2 pizzas and 2 sodas each day.
The point is that specialization and trade is beneficial. In WOW there are players who have a gathering and an armor profession. These players are not specialized. In the burning crusade, armor professions were almost required, as the crafted epic set produced was equivalent to tier 4.5 gear. So having one armor profession and one gold making profession was expected. This however is no longer the case as armor professions are pretty ho hum at the moment.
Many players are thinking hmm, I should use both of my professions to make gold, so when they mine ore, they then create an epic piece of armor. Then than sell this armor on the auction house for 700g and think wow, I made a lot of gold my professions are great! Actually you only have half a pizza and one soda. Here is why, the time it took you to gather ore, use your skills (CDs), post on the AH, comes out to three hours or so of played time. This breaks down your gold per hour to 230. Since I know that questing dallies can produce 400g per hour, and gathering herbs and ore simultaneously can net 800-1000g per hour, I feel pretty confident in saying you are not using your time effectively.
The next thing to consider is the price of the materials themselves, if you had sold the raw materials, ore and titansteel etc, what was the market value? Often I see these pieces of armor selling for less than the price of the mats to create them.
So here is my advice, I recommend specialization for maximum profit, hence if you herb or mine, do so together. By dipping into multiple fields you are making it more complicated when it comes to accounting for your gold per hour time. Remember to keep it simple, and account for you time. Read more!
Why you might not be making as much gold as you think.
Almost everyone here has been in economics 101, so you should remember the story about two men. Man A can produce 4 pizzas or 2 sodas in a day; man B can produce 1 pizza or 4 sodas a day. If each man spent half their time producing pizza and soda, man A would have 2 pizzas and 1 soda each day, and man B would have half a pizza and 2 sodas each day. But if they specialized and traded, each man could have 2 pizzas and 2 sodas each day.
The point is that specialization and trade is beneficial. In WOW there are players who have a gathering and an armor profession. These players are not specialized. In the burning crusade, armor professions were almost required, as the crafted epic set produced was equivalent to tier 4.5 gear. So having one armor profession and one gold making profession was expected. This however is no longer the case as armor professions are pretty ho hum at the moment.
Many players are thinking hmm, I should use both of my professions to make gold, so when they mine ore, they then create an epic piece of armor. Then than sell this armor on the auction house for 700g and think wow, I made a lot of gold my professions are great! Actually you only have half a pizza and one soda. Here is why, the time it took you to gather ore, use your skills (CDs), post on the AH, comes out to three hours or so of played time. This breaks down your gold per hour to 230. Since I know that questing dallies can produce 400g per hour, and gathering herbs and ore simultaneously can net 800-1000g per hour, I feel pretty confident in saying you are not using your time effectively.
The next thing to consider is the price of the materials themselves, if you had sold the raw materials, ore and titansteel etc, what was the market value? Often I see these pieces of armor selling for less than the price of the mats to create them.
So here is my advice, I recommend specialization for maximum profit, hence if you herb or mine, do so together. By dipping into multiple fields you are making it more complicated when it comes to accounting for your gold per hour time. Remember to keep it simple, and account for you time. Read more!
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
The Phases of Knowledge, AH style
A Blog from Japan!
So I am writing this from Japan, but thought I would try to get to a web cafe to get this posted to my blog when I get a chance. So today lets talk about the phases of learning the Auction House.
While I am still refining my theories about the WOW economy, I think that all players can be placed into one of four categories. The following is me trying to quatify my thoughts and theories, and I would appreciate any feedback on my writing so I can further refine my explanations.
When learning something new, it is said that the first stage is being unconciously bad. This comes to mean that because we are unaware of something we don't even know that we are bad at it. The next three phases are conciously bad, conciously good, and finally unconciously good. These phases of learning transitioning learners from having no knowledge to the point where we barely need to think to do something well. The auction house is in essence like any knowledge, and as we learn to play and manipulate it we too move through these four stages. Today's post I want to try and quantify where each phase falls in terms of gold earning per hour and what defines each phase.
Preface: No one fits exactly into any definition. You may find that you have characteristics of multiple phases. Take everything you read following this with a grain of salt.
Phase 1: Unconciously Bad
Gold per hour potential: 0-1000g
So phase one represents the majority of players, this is where most people reside, and their knowledge of the auction house is limited to being minimalist buyers/sellers. They may or may not be sellers of items they have aquired in the normal course of their play, such as herbs, ore, and leather, eternals, and other similar items. We can describe their interaction minimal, only visit the auction house when they need items or want gold from items they would like to sell.
The major difference phase 1 and all other phases is intent, and the origin of where these players income comes from. As one progresses down the path of an AH Trader, our intent is to make gold strictly from the buying and selling of items on the auction house. While there are numerous ways to do this (arbitrage, investment, conversion, production) all share the common characteristic of starting and ending at the auction house. By moving to phase two we make a concious decision to create wealth .
(second half written offline, might be a little repetitive)
Phase 2: Consciously Bad
Income: -500 to 500 gold per hour played
This phase is exactly like it sounds, you have decided to go into business for yourself on the auction house. Like businesses in the real world, 90% fail in the first year. This stage is where many players lose money and return to being stage one players.
Let first discuss this entrance into the market and what differentiates it from stage one. In stage one; we are consumers, and sometimes producers (raw goods). Our gold comes from selling raw goods on the auction house, or quests and dalies. Stage two is different in that we are trying to make gold from supplying a service to other players, the process of which doesn稚 introduce gold or raw goods into the game.
This phase is a learning phase. Those that learn well may lose gold at first but eventually progress to the point where they supply services that will always turn a profit. Being successful in this phase pushes players into phase three. Think of it as the stage where you learn to ride a bicycle, some fall off and never try again, other eventually learn how to ride.
Phase 3: Consciously Good
Income: 500 to 1000 gold per hour played
You have been playing the auction house, and for the most part know the items you deal with, and how to guarantee a profit each time you sell. At phase three players understand that they need to sell items for more then the price of the raw materials to make a real profit. At this phase your trying out different markets, and probably have goods in a variety of sections of the auction house. All of these items should eventually turn a profit, the main question is how long it will take to sell.
For an analogy, you have learned to ride a bicycle very well
Phase 4: Unconsciously Good
Income: 1000 to 2500 gold per hour played
Phase four is different than phase 3 in time, quantity and volume. In phase four auction house traders have gotten to the point where you dont need to check whether items are profitable before listing, you list large amounts of items (in the hundreds) and make heavy use of mods like auctioneer to automate everything. Phase four takes less time to do then phase three, produces more gold per hour, and deals in larger quantities of goods. The actions of a phase four player are identical to the phase three player, they have just learned to do the same things more efficiently. You ride the bike without thinking about what you do, you just do it.
Phase 5?: The Professional (Consciously Excellent)
Income: 2500 to 5000 gold per hour played
If you can ride a bike doesnt mean you will become an Olympic bicyclist. Being unconsciously good at basketball doesnt make you Labron James. The difference with these professionals and normal people is that they take it one step further. Going beyond phase four requires becoming conscious again, It requires reanalyzing your every actions to find ways to improve and become excellent.
This phase goes beyond just selling on the auction house, it involves living there and literally taking over the auction house. It involves setting up monopolies and driving other players out of the market because they cant compete with your efficiency. It requires a massive amount of starting capital (20,000 to 40,000 gold) and a lot of knowledge. It is a phase I havent yet entered myself despite having a net worth of over 100k gold, because it requires a conscious decision to spend the time and gold to drive your competitors out of business. If I am successful, I will write a blog about it. If I am not, well I will write to tell you why I think I failed.
Read more!
So I am writing this from Japan, but thought I would try to get to a web cafe to get this posted to my blog when I get a chance. So today lets talk about the phases of learning the Auction House.
While I am still refining my theories about the WOW economy, I think that all players can be placed into one of four categories. The following is me trying to quatify my thoughts and theories, and I would appreciate any feedback on my writing so I can further refine my explanations.
When learning something new, it is said that the first stage is being unconciously bad. This comes to mean that because we are unaware of something we don't even know that we are bad at it. The next three phases are conciously bad, conciously good, and finally unconciously good. These phases of learning transitioning learners from having no knowledge to the point where we barely need to think to do something well. The auction house is in essence like any knowledge, and as we learn to play and manipulate it we too move through these four stages. Today's post I want to try and quantify where each phase falls in terms of gold earning per hour and what defines each phase.
Preface: No one fits exactly into any definition. You may find that you have characteristics of multiple phases. Take everything you read following this with a grain of salt.
Phase 1: Unconciously Bad
Gold per hour potential: 0-1000g
So phase one represents the majority of players, this is where most people reside, and their knowledge of the auction house is limited to being minimalist buyers/sellers. They may or may not be sellers of items they have aquired in the normal course of their play, such as herbs, ore, and leather, eternals, and other similar items. We can describe their interaction minimal, only visit the auction house when they need items or want gold from items they would like to sell.
The major difference phase 1 and all other phases is intent, and the origin of where these players income comes from. As one progresses down the path of an AH Trader, our intent is to make gold strictly from the buying and selling of items on the auction house. While there are numerous ways to do this (arbitrage, investment, conversion, production) all share the common characteristic of starting and ending at the auction house. By moving to phase two we make a concious decision to create wealth .
(second half written offline, might be a little repetitive)
Phase 2: Consciously Bad
Income: -500 to 500 gold per hour played
This phase is exactly like it sounds, you have decided to go into business for yourself on the auction house. Like businesses in the real world, 90% fail in the first year. This stage is where many players lose money and return to being stage one players.
Let first discuss this entrance into the market and what differentiates it from stage one. In stage one; we are consumers, and sometimes producers (raw goods). Our gold comes from selling raw goods on the auction house, or quests and dalies. Stage two is different in that we are trying to make gold from supplying a service to other players, the process of which doesn稚 introduce gold or raw goods into the game.
This phase is a learning phase. Those that learn well may lose gold at first but eventually progress to the point where they supply services that will always turn a profit. Being successful in this phase pushes players into phase three. Think of it as the stage where you learn to ride a bicycle, some fall off and never try again, other eventually learn how to ride.
Phase 3: Consciously Good
Income: 500 to 1000 gold per hour played
You have been playing the auction house, and for the most part know the items you deal with, and how to guarantee a profit each time you sell. At phase three players understand that they need to sell items for more then the price of the raw materials to make a real profit. At this phase your trying out different markets, and probably have goods in a variety of sections of the auction house. All of these items should eventually turn a profit, the main question is how long it will take to sell.
For an analogy, you have learned to ride a bicycle very well
Phase 4: Unconsciously Good
Income: 1000 to 2500 gold per hour played
Phase four is different than phase 3 in time, quantity and volume. In phase four auction house traders have gotten to the point where you dont need to check whether items are profitable before listing, you list large amounts of items (in the hundreds) and make heavy use of mods like auctioneer to automate everything. Phase four takes less time to do then phase three, produces more gold per hour, and deals in larger quantities of goods. The actions of a phase four player are identical to the phase three player, they have just learned to do the same things more efficiently. You ride the bike without thinking about what you do, you just do it.
Phase 5?: The Professional (Consciously Excellent)
Income: 2500 to 5000 gold per hour played
If you can ride a bike doesnt mean you will become an Olympic bicyclist. Being unconsciously good at basketball doesnt make you Labron James. The difference with these professionals and normal people is that they take it one step further. Going beyond phase four requires becoming conscious again, It requires reanalyzing your every actions to find ways to improve and become excellent.
This phase goes beyond just selling on the auction house, it involves living there and literally taking over the auction house. It involves setting up monopolies and driving other players out of the market because they cant compete with your efficiency. It requires a massive amount of starting capital (20,000 to 40,000 gold) and a lot of knowledge. It is a phase I havent yet entered myself despite having a net worth of over 100k gold, because it requires a conscious decision to spend the time and gold to drive your competitors out of business. If I am successful, I will write a blog about it. If I am not, well I will write to tell you why I think I failed.
Read more!
Friday, June 5, 2009
What no posts?
Out of the country, will resume blog upon my return. Sorry just didn't have the time in the hectic day to day to get around to putting togethr one of the 8 drafts i currently have hiding in back.
anyway I will return around the 12th, so expect something by the 15th. Read more!
anyway I will return around the 12th, so expect something by the 15th. Read more!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
