Scribes Rejoice - MoP Changes To Head & Shoulder Enchants

Another Gold Making Option For Scribes

Today there was some pretty big news released by Ghostcrawler in a blue post, regarding some major changes coming in the World of Warcraft expansion, Mists of Pandaria.  Blizzard is removing head enchants from the game and is also changing how shoulder enchants are acquired for your gear. 


Ghostcrawler Explains Head & Shoulder Enchant Changes In MoP

We will no longer be having to grind reputation for either head or shoulder enchants in Mists of Pandaria.  Head Enchants are being removed completely and the Shoulder Enchants are going to remain in the game, but will now be made by the Inscription profession.  Scribes everywhere are already rejoicing as this will be an additional way to make gold with your Scribe in Mists of Pandaria.  Every single character will be wanting to purchase and use the Shoulder Enchants. 

Think of these new Inscription crafted Shoulder Enchants just like the Leatherworking & Tailoring crafted Leg Armor Enchants.  Almost every character uses Leg Armor Enchants and they have historically been great markets for gold making due to the constant demand.  Shoulder Enchants potentially could be just as profitable, but I do have one fear.  The Inscription Glyph market has been the most cut-throat market on damn near every server.  I hope those undercutting philosophies don't spill over into the Shoulder Enchant market as well. 

This could be the last bit of encouragement you need to dust off that mid level Scribe and get that Inscription skill maxed and ready for Mists of Pandaria gold making. 

Do you see this change as another benefit for Scribes or a hassle for consumers?

Enjoy The Posts Here at Cold's Gold Factory? Check Out Cold's Mysterious Fortune Card Mastery Gold Making Guide. Also Check Out My Favorite All Around WoW Gold Making Guide and J!inx - Clothing For Gamers And Geeks.

WoW TCG Archives Booster Pack Loot Card Lottery

WoW Trading Card Game (TCG) Loot Cards & Archives Booster Packs

The WoW Trading Card Game has always been an interesting branch of the World of Warcraft product line.  The booster packs for the WoW Trading Card Game have a chance at containing the more rare loot cards.  These loot cards contain a code for an item that can be used in the World of Warcraft game.  These loot cards are fun additions to the game that can include new mounts, new companion pets, and new vanity items, such as tabards or toys.  Many of the rare loot cards are able to be sold for hefty amounts on ebay and other sites as the loot cards are hard to find and without a ton of luck, would require purchasing a bunch of WoW TCG booster packs for a chance at a rare loot card.

Archives Booster Pack Box Sale

Recently, I spoke with Elvine on Twitter regarding the Archives expansion pack booster boxes on sale from Amazon.  We discussed the loot card distribution and the odds of making a profit by buying the sale priced boxes and selling the loot cards.  Elvine had already order a set of 4 of the WoW TCG Archives expansion booster boxes.  He granted me permission to use his experience and results in a blog post, as I found the notion rather interesting and thought that you might too.

The WoW TCG Archives Expansion

The Archives expansion for the WoW Trading Card Game is a special release that also includes some of the popular loot cards.  By design, the Archives expansion is a 190 card set of reprinted cards from the "best of" the first 3 years of the WoW TCG, but done in all foil.  The set contains some valuable and popular loot cards.  Each pack has a chance to contain loot cards, but the really lucky may get one of the 4 rare mounts:

1. Spectral Tiger
2. X-51 Nether Rocket
3. Riding Turtle
4. Big Battle Bear

Uncommon loot card possibilities include:

1. Robotic Homing Chicken (Rocket Chicken Companion Pet)
2. Banana Charm (Monkey Companion Pet)
3. D.I.S.C.O.
4. Fishing Chair

Common loot card options include:

1. Paper Flying Machine
2. Tabard Of The Flame
3. Papa Hummell's Pet Biscuit
4. Sandbox Tiger

The Archives booster boxes contain 24 of the 10 card booster packs and each booster pack contains 9 game cards and 1 crafting OR loot card. So for $39.95 you have 24 chances at pulling loot cards.  The notion perked my interest, so I dug a little deeper to try and find out the distribution pattern for the loot cards.  As per the FAQ on WoW TCG Loot Cards, the current loot card distribution (for sets after the March of the Legion expansion) is as follows:

• Commons - 20 to 21 per case, at least 1 per expansion box.
• Uncommons - 2 per case, or 1 in 6 expansion boxes, some rare cases have 1, where other rare cases have 3.
• Rares - 1 per case, or 1 in 12 expansion boxes, some rare cases have none, while other rare cases have 2.

The important thing to realize and not get overly excited about guaranteed rare loot cards is that when dealing with TCG boosters you are looking at 3 main product packages.  There are Booster Packs, Booster Boxes, and Cases.

• Booster Pack - 10 card pack, contains 9 cards and 1 crafting or loot card.
• Booster Box - 24 booster packs are in 1 booster box.
• Case - 12 booster boxes make up 1 full sealed case.

Looking at the odds and loot card distribution show that even if you buy an unopened full sealed case, you aren't guaranteed to get a rare mount loot card.  There is so much randomness built into the loot card distribution that it is still a gamble, even at the reduced sale prices. 

Elvine's Loot Card Results From 4 Archives TCG Booster Boxes

Elvine purchased 4 sealed booster boxes, which is a total of 96 booster packs.  The packs were opened live on Elvine's Twitch livestreaming channel.  Here are the loot card results from the 96 packs.

• Box #1
• 1 Tabard of the Flame (Landro Longshot)
• 2 Paper Airplane
• Box #2
• 2 Pet Biscuits (Papa Hummel's Old Fashioned Pet Biscuits)
• 1 Riding Turtle (Saltwater Snapjaw)
• 1 Banana Charm - Monkey Pet (King Mukla)
• 4 Sandbox Tigers
• Box #3
• 1 Sandbox Tiger
• Box #4
• 1 Tabard of the Flame

The results are a bit crazy and just go to show that the TCG loot card distribution is almost completely random.  13 Loot cards total and 8 of them, including the sole rare and sole uncommon, all coming out of the same sealed booster box. Boxes 1, 3, & 4 are complete duds, where as, box 2 is the only one with loot cards worth more than the purchase price of the booster box.  So think twice before rushing off to buy some sealed Archives booster boxes in hopes of making money selling the loot cards you find.  Odds are you won't be able to open enough loot cards to make it worth your investment unless you get lucky and obtain one of the boxes that hold the rare mount loot cards.

Even Cheaper Archives Booster Packs

If you are still interested in trying your shot at the WoW TCG Loot card lottery, consider Amazon for single booster packs.  Amazon currently has single Archives booster packs for only $1.25 each, which is cheaper than the sealed box sale price.  You lose the benefit of having a sealed booster box, but as shown above, there is no guaranteed distribution from buying a sealed box or case.  So next time you are on amazon and need a few more dollars to reach the minimum purchase total for free shipping, consider tossing in a few WoW TCG Archives booster packs.  You may just get lucky and find yourself a super rare loot card mount.




Enjoy The Posts Here at Cold's Gold Factory? Check Out Cold's Mysterious Fortune Card Mastery Gold Making Guide. Also Check Out My Favorite All Around WoW Gold Making Guide and J!inx - Clothing For Gamers And Geeks.

June Topic For Cold's Gold Blogging Carnival

Cold's Gold Blogging Carnival - June 2012 Topic

A big thanks to all of the participants who submitted entries for last month's blogging carnival. Hopefully you will continue to participate in our monthly shared blogging topics. Participation from newer bloggers is also highly encouraged. Everyone is welcome to write a post for the blogging carnivals at Cold's Gold Factory. Again, thank you to all the bloggers who submitted posts for the May Carnival on Suprise Cata Markets. If you missed the last carnival, be sure to check it out!  Stockpiling for Mists of Pandaria is a hot topic right now and tons of traffic continues to pour in looking for stockpiling tips on what to stockpile for Mists of Pandaria.


What If I Don't Have A Blog And I Want To Participate?

If you don't have your own site, you can still participate in the gold blogging carnivals. Sometimes a topic may tickle your fancy or you may have a unique spin on a blogging carnival topic that you would like to have read by others. Well, you are in luck. There are 2 WoW blogging sites that will post and host your content as a guest post. Just follow the normal blogging carnival rules that the others follow and get your post hosted and live prior to the carnival. Then, just submit the link to me for inclusion in the upcoming gold blogging carnival.

The friendly sites willing to host your content are:

1. Goldgrub's Goblin Academy - Contact: Me (Cold)
2. Squidoo - Join up and make a lens on the topic and earn money too.

  

June 2012 Gold Blogging Carnival Topic

With the Mists of Pandaria expansion on its way and many markets starting to feel the end of expansion lull, we must start to prepare for the new WoW expansion, Mists of Pandaria.  Many players like to level new characters during the end of expansion slump and there are still brand new players entering the game all the time.  For the June Gold Blogging Carnival Topic let's focus on things to look out for, collect, farm, grind, etc. while you are leveling a new character in WoW.

What Are Some Things You Recommend Players Look Out For While Leveling A New Character In WoW?

Enjoy The Posts Here at Cold's Gold Factory? Check Out Cold's Mysterious Fortune Card Mastery Gold Making Guide. Also Check Out My New Favorite All Around WoW Gold Making Guide and J!inx - Clothing For Gamers And Geeks.

Zygor Guides WoW & Diablo 3 Strategy Guides - Crazy Sale Prices!

 

Zygor Guides For WoW and Diablo III - Mega Sale

Zygor Guides has been the #1 Best Selling Warcraft Guide Provider for quite some time now.  The quality and usefulness of the Zygor Guides has earned them the distinction of being the best guide provider for World of Warcraft.  Zygor Guides are used by an absolute ton of players in World of Warcraft, including many personal friends, peers, and colleagues.  I have never heard anyone complain about their Zygor Guide purchase.  As a matter of fact, every single owner of a Zygor Guide that I know, constantly raves about how the Zygor leveling system works.  It cuts your leveling time drastically from trying to level blindly on your own in World of Warcraft.

Zygor Launches Their Diablo III Strategy Guide Today!

Today, Zygor Guides launched their brand new strategy guide for Diablo III.  There are many Diablo 3 Scam Guides on the market already that have been claiming to be masters of Diablo III for months now, when the game isn't even out yet.  The Diablo III Zygor Guide is the only honest and trustworthy guide that I have seen so far.  All of the other Diablo 3 guides have already been on sale for weeks or months and have already been claiming to be masters of the auction house, leveling, and PvP.  The RMAH and PvP aren't even making it into the release version of the game until later dates!  All of these other scam guides have been selling for weeks based on lies.  Zygor Guides has not been engaging in any of these devious and misleading behaviors.  The have just released the Zygor D3 guide and tell you the truth up front: 

Remember, no other Diablo 3 guide seller has been even close to honest with their buyers.  Only Zygor Guides could be trusted prior to the Diablo 3 release date launch and I wouldn't trust any other guide after Diablo 3 launches either.  Their proven track record in World of Warcraft will translate over to just as great of a product and customer service in their Diablo 3 guide.  they are even asking for your input as the finish the guide, so that they are building a guide based off of what the readers want.  Yes! Zygor Rocks!

"Customers who order will receive instant access to an early sneak peek of our Diablo III guide, which consists of a partial walk through of Act I as well as beginners guides for all the major aspects of the game. This was the only content available before the game's release. Upon the official release of Diablo III, these guides will be updated daily with a complete full game walk through (Act I-IV) and expanded guide content for crafting, classes, skill optimization, the followers system, and achievements, until the full game is covered in the same fashion as this sneak peek version."

The Super Crazy Zygor Guides Sale

To celebrate the launch of the new Diablo III Zygor Guide, they are having a crazy sale, which includes a discount for previous guide buyers.  Here is a quick summary of their sale:

1. All WoW Guides are 25% Off.
2. Past buyers of a WoW Guide can get the Diablo III Guide for 33% Off!
3. Yes. You can buy a 25% off WoW Guide in order to also Buy a 33% Off Diablo III Guide.

I told you this sale is crazy!

Check Out Zygor Guides Now!

Jump Straight To The Diablo III Zygor Guide.


Who else loves their Zygor Guide?  Please share your Zygor testimonials in the comments.

Surprise Markets Of Cataclysm - May Gold Blogging Carnival

Cold's Gold Blogging Carnivals

Cold's Gold Blogging Carnival - 2012

Welcome to another 2012 edition of Cold's Gold Blogging Carnival. These carnivals will continue to take place the 11th day of every month and will be hosted here at Cold's Gold Factory. All World of Warcraft bloggers are welcome to participate and feedback both here and on the original authors' sites is strongly encouraged. So show some support and please leave some feedback in the comments section. These bloggers put a lot of time and hard work into these blogging carnival posts so please tell them what you think.

If you would like to be included in the next month's carnival, please review the guidelines for Cold's Gold Blogging Carnivals and submit your live post link via email (ssmith0911 at live dot com) before the 10th of the month. Read up on the benefits of participating in blogging carnivals at my other blog designed to help new bloggers, Blogging Vitals.  (Lots of tips for those of you starting out or interested in blogging.)  Articles for the CGF carnival are listed in the order they are received. Thank you to all the bloggers participating in this months carnival!

If you are not a blogger, you can still participate in the monthly carnivals as you can have a post hosted at Goldgrubs.com.  Now I present to you this month's participants answering the question:

Looking Back Throughout The Cataclysm Expansion:

What Was A Niche Market That You Were Suprised To Find Or That You Did Better Than Expected In During Cataclysm?

Selling Level 81 Greens by Farli of The Overcut


Most Surprising Cata Market: Nightmare's Tear by Cold of Cold's Gold Factory

My Surprise Cataclysm Niche Market by Nev of Auction House Addict

Thanks again to all of this month's participants.  Be sure to check back later for next month's carnival topic and remember to look for next month's gold blogging carnival on the 11th.  If you have a topic idea, don't be afraid to send it in.  We may use your idea, which will get you proper credit as well.  

Until next month,

Happy Diablo 3 Launch Week!

Come Vote and Comment On What Class You Are Starting With In Diablo 3.

Enjoy The Posts Here at Cold's Gold Factory? Check Out Cold's Mysterious Fortune Card Mastery Gold Making Guide. Also Check Out My New Favorite All Around WoW Gold Making Guide and J!inx - Clothing For Gamers And Geeks.

Most Surprising Market During Cataclysm: Nightmare's Tears

Most Surprising Niche Market During Cataclysm

For the May 2012 gold blogging carnival topic, I asked:
This is my entry into the carnival answering that same question.  You can find all of the Gold Blogger's Carnival topics and entries on Cold's Gold Blogging Carnivals page.  Anyone is welcome to participate and contribute an entry for the monthly topics. 

"What Was A Niche Market That You Were Suprised To Find Or That You Did Better Than Expected In During Cataclysm?"

Nightmare's Tears Still Sell In Cataclysm

Of all of the niche markets that I've dealt in during the Cataclsym expansion, none other was more surprising to me than the Nightmare's Tears niche market.  Why was this market so surprising to me?  The Nightmare's Tear is an almost completed outdate item and during Cataclysm, it should only have been used by non-Cata Twinks and leveling characters who can't use the Cataclysm level gems (due to item level requirements).

The Nightmare's Tear is a prismatic gem that provides +10 to each stat and was orginally introduced during the Wrath of the Lich King expansion.  Back during Wrath, this gem was in everyone's gear and was limited to 1 equipped per character.  Due to player ignorance and / or stupidity it continued to see much use throughout Cataclysm, even though using any Cataclysm level gem appropriate to your character's spec was a better option.  The demand had to be related to players not understanding how the prismatic gem and prismatic slots worked.  Players incorrectly believed that a prismatic socket had to have a prismatic gem slotted into it, when in fact, a prismatic gem can hold any color gem.  I further tested this hypothesis, by double checking the armory pages of characters that had purchased one of my Nightmare's Tears.  I almost always found that Nightmare's Tear in a prismatic slot of the buying max level character.

Originally I tested this market out with a few of the remaining Dragon's Eyes I had left over from Wrath of the Lich King.  The Nightmare's Tears I posted all sold out rapidly as no one else was selling them.  I instantly thought it couldn't have been a fluke and looked on the armory to see what these prismatic gems were being used for.  Once I realized that players were looking for the Nightmare's Tear gem for their prismatic sockets, I started to churn out as many as I could.  The removal of the Icy Prism cooldown, made it much easier to gamble with Frozen Orbs and the Icy Prisms to acquire multiple Dragon's Eyes to turn into the Nightmare's Tears.

The demand was so high after Patch 4.2 and 4.3 that I had exhausted all of my reserve Frozen Orbs & Dragon's Tears and had to turn to buying Dragon's Tears on the auction house, in addition to returning back to the Dalaran Jewelcrafting daily quests.  I was even buying out low and mid priced Nightmare's Tears (once others caught on) in order to meet the demand and keep the prices high.  I was able to get an easy 700-750 gold for a single Nightmare's Tear and was selling 2-4 a day for months.  After drying up the Frozen Orb and Dragon's Eye supply markets on my server, I got tired of running the JC Dailies and threw in the towel as the copycats had finally caught on after a couple months of holding the market to myself. 

Did I make a lot of gold off of the ignorance of other players?  Yes, but at the same time, I was just providing goods in a market that most assumed was dead.  The lack of competition and increased demand for those goods led to the increased prices.  Without the demand for them, I never would have been able to continously sell those old prismatic gems for such a great price.  So remember that just because an item shouldn't be selling, doesn't mean that it won't.  Provide what people are looking to buy and you may just find a niche market with great demand and low competition, even if it is selling nearly obsolete items to ignorant players using them incorrectly. 

What suprise markets did you guys find during the Cataclysm expansion?


Enjoy The Posts Here at Cold's Gold Factory? Check Out Cold's Mysterious Fortune Card Mastery Gold Making Guide. Also Check Out My Favorite All Around WoW Gold Making Guide and J!inx - Clothing For Gamers And Geeks.

Making Gold In WoW Off LFR Loot Rolls - A Reader Submission

Making Gold In WoW With Looking For Raid

Today I present to you an interesting reader submission / guest post from a reader here at Cold's Gold Factory.  Kylor contacted me via email with a gold making tactic that he has been using.  I had thought of using this strategy, but since I hate raiding, I never got around to trying it out.  Kylor was kind enough to submit a guest post on this tactic of making gold in WoW.  Take a look and let us hear what you think of this strategy in the comments.

Hey guys,



I recently returned to the game and I wanted to share my experience on something that I've been doing to make some quick gold while capping my valor points: selling your rolls in LFR (Looking For Raid). I have found that players who need the items from LFR are very willing to pay a pretty penny for them. I usually post in trade something along the lines of "WTS Hunter rolls in LFR, pst" and get a couple responses pretty quickly.


It does seem that these players are more willing to agree to pay for each item won, rather than paying a flat amount before the raid, but both methods can definitely work. As far as pricing, i have had sucess with prices of 500g per item and 1000g for the weapons, but have gone as high as 2500g for a weapon, so experiment a little with the pricing on your server and see what works for you. If you do decide to go with the pay up front method, I have found that 1000g works well, so that may be a good starting point. You could also try a combination of both, something like 500g up front and 500g per item won.


There may be times when people in the raid are pretty unhappy with you for rolling on gear that you don't need. I usually just inform them that I gave it to someone already, and have them back me up in raid chat. I don't see this being a problem really, but I have been kicked from the group for it once. In that case I just whispered the buyer to leave and we queued up again. It really helps to have a tank guildie or friend queue with you and leave once the raid starts to speed things up.


This can be a great way to make a little gold while capping your alts on valor points, and it really adds up if you have multiple characters able to do LFR. I'm sure that this was much more profitable towards the beginning of the patch, but there is still money to be made here, at least until Blizzard changes the loot rules. If anyone else has had success selling their rolls in LFR, I'd love to hear about what prices you've been able to sell at, or any other methods you might have!



-Kylor

Well, there is the goblin mind set put to great use!  I'm sure this tactic is frowned upon by many of the LFR cry babies, but there isn't a thing they can do about it.  It is really no different that running LFR with your guild members so that you can give the items to your guild members to help them geared up quicker.  Blizzard has allowed this strategy, which is playing within the rules of LFR that they created, but they are changing the way loot works when Mists of Pandaria is released.  Someone may not like this strategy, but it isn't illegal and is a nice way to make extra gold doing something you were already planning on doing anyway.

Thanks Kylor!

What do you guys think about selling your loot rolls in Looking For Raid?



Enjoy The Posts Here at Cold's Gold Factory? Check Out Cold's Mysterious Fortune Card Mastery Gold Making Guide. Also Check Out My Favorite All Around WoW Gold Making Guide and J!inx - Clothing For Gamers And Geeks.