A new expansion means a totally new economy and this will definitely be the same for World of Warcraft: Cataclysm. I remember when the Wrath of the Lich King was released; everything plummeted before and after the release. The new expansion also means extremely inflated prices for the new items so if you can get a head start on the economy and content, you’ll be sure to make tons of gold, possibly enough to last for the good part of the next few months. Another example is when a patch was released in the Lich King when epic gems were released. This meant you could prospect Titanium Ore or get them through Icy Prisms. I know of at least a couple people on my server that made hundreds of thousands of gold in the first couple weeks by preparing in advance so that they could take advantage of the inflated prices once the patch was released.
Guessing What Will Sell at High Prices
While it can be difficult to guess exactly what will sell high you can make educational guesses. Enchants will definitely be needed of all sorts. Enchanting materials will be high in demand but so will materials for leg enchants, gems, and other enchants. The richer players will be willing to shell out high amounts of gold because they know they can always make it back. You should be at this level if you have been following this blog.
While some of the information on this site is outdated, there’s still plenty of information you could refer to make tons of gold. So be sure to go back to my list of the best blog posts and seek out what you think will be helpful.
Some Hints and Tips for Taking Full Advantage of Cataclysm’s release
First, pay full attention to the trade channel. There’s going to be a lot of spam as usual, but there will be those people that will seriously want to trade. Especially pay attention to the WTB (Want to Buy) chat as you will see what people want and you could ask them to name a price (even if you don’t have the material/item) if they don’t name a price in trade channel.
Second, watch the Auction House and check it very regularly as prices will fluctuate big time the first few weeks the expansion is released. I’m going to keep an excel record of all the new items just so that I know exactly how much to be paying. You will most likely have the opportunity to make tons of gold right off the Auction House because a lot of people won’t have any idea what things go for, if you keep track you’ll be able to buy low and sell high over and over again. Just be careful as there will be others doing the same thing and the prices could fall quickly. Don’t keep large quantities in your inventory unless you’re able to pick up something you are absolutely sure will sell or you could use later on.
Third, this will depend on what kind of player you are. I love to be laid back and let the crazy players go ahead and hit maximum level while I leisurely play my toon. Having said that, I’m making gold like there’s no tomorrow in the process. I do exactly what I told you to do so that when these crazy players hit maximum level and need enchants, I’m ready to sell at top price making tons of gold. Once a certain amount of items are on the market, you’ll be able to quickly level your toon up as well. The first few days will be lagging like mad anyways as most people will be converging to newer areas, that’s while you’ll probably see me in Exodar making gold as usual.
Set Goals
Know exactly how much you want. Gold will definitely be easier to come by just by questing so it might be ok to set you goals high, in the 50,000 to 100,000 gold range before you’re satisfied. You could always aim higher but it might slow your levelling down so I’ll leave that at your discretion. I’m probably aiming for the 300,000 gold range but I have a strong base, so it’s all up to you.
That should be sufficient information. Find your niche and really milk it while you can, if you can get the ball rolling, you might have enough gold to last you for months or heck even the entire expansion! You won’t have to worry about grinding or farming like some of the other players will. You’ll be able to focus on running dungeons (heroics) and raids gearing your toon up and will be afford the super expensive materials as they are released. Good luck and more importantly have fun!