Azeroth’s Farmer’s Almanac
The Farmer’s Class Guide: The Short Version (part 2 of 2)
By BD “Daknit” Blake
Knights In Slighted Service
When it comes to Death Knights, you are either for them or against them. Either which way, you will eventually pick one up and try out the class. The DK has a special 2 hour run start zone, in which at the end of it all you will be all geared up and with about 20 GP in pocket change. Once you are “free to roam about the country,” you will have a good idea whether you want to keep your DK or not.
Good sound advice is to keep the DK. If you don’t like him, then he can be your new mule, freeing up your previous one. You can have him run solely vendor runs or have him camp out near a popular vendor. You can even use him as a spot farmer, keeping him in a certain zone for no other reason than to farm it for 15 minutes a day.
If you do like him, then you got a new member to your empire that’s good to go and leveled up over half way to max to start. Not to mention all those flight points. Before you start to venture off into Outland, give the guy some professions to skill up in first. You want to hit Outland running.
Cliffnotes for Outland
Outland has always felt like a ***** sheep of WoW. Nothing seems to fit the feel of Azeroth (I suppose that’s the point), and as soon as you get there, you can’t wait to get to Northrend to the really good stuff. And the whole point of Dugi’s leveling guide is to get to max level as quickly as possible. Double that if you are a farmer seeking gold.
Alliance: Use Dugi’s Guide and feel free to skip around a bit, provided you got the Rep and Level to continue on. Hellfire is an annoying place if you don’t have a flying mount, so make that priority #1. You will want to be friendly with Cenarion and level 61 before you continue into Zangermarsh. If you are level 61, but not friendly, you could buy your way through on Unidentified Plant Parts and turning them in to Lauranna Thar’well (80.3, 64.2 ZM). The plant parts could be found on the AH or farmed quite easily in the zone. Don’t leave Zangarmarsh until you are level 62 and friendly with Kurenai (these quests towards the end of the guide). Hit TK forest until you are level 64, then move to Nagrand until you are ready to leave at level 68. Between leveling, farming, and the dungeon finder, you should be in and out of Outland in no time.
Horde: About the same as above. Play in Hellfire to level 61 and friendly with Cenarion, then leave Zangarmarsh for TK Forest at 62. Switch over to Nagrand at 64 and play through until level 68. The difference here is that you need to complete the “Assassin” quest line from Nazgrel in Hellfire in order to get the quests in Nagrand, so try to do that before you leave for Zangarmarsh.
The Dungeon Finder and you
DF is great for those OJT Farmers (On the Job Training). The extra experience is a bonus, plus with a quest waiting for you as soon as you enter the instance. The DF is almost a must for your Enchanters (or, shall we say Disenchanters?), Herblist and Skinners — even more so late game! Some of the best scales and weeds have better rate of drop in the Outland and Northrend instances. Even if you don’t have these professions, building up your Justice and Honor Points for end game gear is a bonus. I tend to build up Justice points and spend them in Dalaran for heirloom armor for my lesser Alts; the armor increases the amount of exp you earn while leveling. That being said, don’t skip bosses!
Let’s take a moment to talk about your relation with other players. Most PuGs know the what’s what to each instance, and if it is your first time, just go with the flow. Try to run as a DPS until you are comfortable in taking up another role. A good PuG can run through an instance in about an average of 20 mins or less. If you know your way around and play your role effectively, you can suggest playing an additional instance. Don’t be afraid to check the party leader if you know your way around.
Try to provide a service for the group such as meals, buffs, or beer. All of these will add, shall we say, “cool points” with the group. This is also suggested if you don’t know your way around. Don’t forget to re-buff at the end of the run, or if you are a Mage, throw up a portal. Engineers can help throw up a Jeeves after a heavy wipe or use goblin jumper cables to get the party back quicker. They can also put up a MOLL-E at the end of the run for all the players to use. Tips like these will increase the likelihood of playing additional instances with the same PuG, or at the very least, you will be remembered.
Note: Need before Greed? Depends. If you are going to wear it, then yes. It’s been considered a bit of a “prick move” to need something you don’t “need.” Lockboxes are the first to come to mind. Try to greed before disenchant. There has been a couple times that other players REALLY wanted that item and were willing to trade/buy for it. Many of the BoE can sell better than what you can disenchant for it, so take that into consideration.
1-2 AH Punch
Everyone knows that they need Auctioneer addon. No new information there. Nab the addon LilSparky as well to complete the 1-2 combo. What it does is compares itself to Auctioneer’s scans, and then it shows you in your crafting window two numbers: what the item is selling for and how much the materials to make it will cost you. If you want to make a profit in your crafts, you have to know when you are taking a loss. Be sure to set up your addon by right clicking on the numbers to set up your values to your needs. (look on the site for more information). In any case, the numbers will appear bold if there is a profit to be made. Be sure to scan the AH often!
Inscriptions Market
You can never go wrong with posting Dark Moon Cards. With glyphs, it can be a game of hit or miss. Glyphs will require a bit more patience. Unlike gems, that are in constant need every time you upgrade your gear, glyphs are a one time deal; once you put it in, you will never need to replace it. To help take some of the guess work out of it I made a table below of the most popular glyphs based upon class and spec. These are “Popular” builds, not meaning they are the “absolute right” build. Everyone and every server is different, but not by much. The ” * ” indicates repeat uses for a single glyphs. If you are crafting for quick cash, focus on those first.
Tip: AH flooded with glyphs? Sell the ink instead. Inscriptionist will try to buy ink over costly herbs when power skilling up. Usually, there is no market for this. You can buy out your competion and re-post at the price you are more comfortable with. Becareful, as a crafter yourself you might need that ink later, so watch how high you post.
Death Knight |
BloodPrime Glyph of Death and Decay Major Glyph of Dancing Rune Weapon *Minor Glyph of Horn of Winter |
Frost |
UnholyMajor Glyph of Anti-Magic Shell |
Druid |
Balance*Minor Glyph of Unburdened Rebirth |
FeralMajor Glyph of Frenzied Regeneration |
Restoration*Minor Glyph of Unburdened Rebirth |
Hunter |
Beast Mastery |
Marksmanship |
Survival |
Mage |
ArcaneMajor Glyph of Arcane Missiles |
Fire |
Frost |
Paladin |
HolyPrime Glyph of Seal of Insight |
ProtectionPrime Glyph of Hammer of the Righteous |
RetributionPrime Glyph of Templar’s Verdict Prime Glyph of Crusader Strike Major Glyph of the Ascetic Crusader |
Priest |
Rogue |
Assassination |
CombatPrime Glyph of Sinister Strike |
Subtlety |
Shaman |
Elemental*Major Glyph of Shamanistic Rage |
Enhancement*Major Glyph of Lightning Shield |
Restoration |
Warlock |
Affliction |
Demonology |
Destruction |
Warrior |
ArmsMajor Glyph of Sweeping Strikes |
Fury |
Protection |
Blacksmithing & Leatherworking
Hopefully, LilSparky mikes like easier for you to see what sells. If you need a quick list, Enchanting rods, Eternal Belt Buckles, keys, and Titanium attachments (shield spikes and weapon chains) are your bread and butter. Sharpening stones do well to. Be wary about creating high end items. Most of the gear people wear are epics found in instances and raids. If you can sell cheap items with cheap materials for a profit, then do so. The enchanters need loving, too. If you have a enchanters, have your gear twinked before you post it on the AH to fetch it a higher price.
For the Leatherworkers, you are pretty much in the same boat. Too many people trade in their Honor and Justice Points in the late game for epic gear or they pick it up. So, you are pretty much restricted to Icescale Leg Armor (DPS) and Frosthide Leg Armor (Tanks). Otherwise, the sister skill (skinning) will reel in more GP from the AH for you by catering to the needs of fellow Leatherworkers.
Engineering
Sucks to be you.
Tailoring
Ok, just kidding. Yeah it sucks to be an engineer and make a profit from it. It is definitely a slow moving profit, but it can be done. One of the problems is that you are mainly catering to other engineers. Sure there are a few things to go around, such as the motorcycles, but your traffic is very limited. The key to this trade is persistence and timing. You need to try to post during peak hours where the population is at its highest and more people are looking on the AH. That will at least increase your averages. And you have to keep posting and believing that it will get picked up. The return outweighs the costs.
Arrows and bullets are out (“Gee, thanks Blizz!”), so that’s no longer profitable. The scopes and guns are still in, but check your numbers to be sure you are not losing out by paying more for the materials than the craft. Pets, both combat and companions, are still cool from Mechanical Squirrels to your own Personal World Destroyer.** Smoke flares are still being bought for Raids and PvP BGs.
If your selling for other engineers, then try a couple of these: Fused Wiring (because its a pain the in *** to get), Delicate Arcane Converters (with help from within the “Farming Empire” you got), combat pets, jumper cables, and anything else you can create to help other engineers skill up faster.
The money is there, but you have to put money in to get money out. Be patient and you will see the profit.
Tailoring
Yeah, bags are still in during high population seasons, but they can dwindle down from time to time. Mooncloth, Moonshroud, Ebonweave, Spellfire, and Shadowweave cloths/bolts can still hold their own. Much of those are very time consuming to make. For the good money, sell Brilliant Spellthread and Sapphire Spellthread (Powerful Enchanted and Powerful Ghostly Spellthreads post Catty). They rotate pretty quickly. You will, of course, need to be exalted in a faction to get these recipes, but Dugi’s Guide has an app for that.
Be sure to spend some time farming the fields for extra cloth, Frostweave especially. Other tailors need love, too.
Alchemy
Keep in mind that people will need mana and health potions, always. Flasks are good, too. Frost Wyrm for the magic users, Endless Rage for close and personal DPS, and Stoneblood for tanks. Pure Mojo is another bonus for magic users. Be sure to research for new potions every chance you get and transmute a colored gem once a day. Easy money there.
Jewelcrafting
Being the local JC is great way to make lots of gold. Everyone needs gems, and then more once they upgrade, and then more once they upgrade again. But the best stuff in this profession will require some friends, and quite a few dailies. Here’s a short list of a couple of the more popular gems:
Meta Relentless Earthsiege Diamond
Meta Austere Earthsiege Diamond
Meta Insightful Earthsiege Diamond
Red/Blue Purified Dreadstone
Red/Yellow/Blue Nightmare Tear
Red/Yellow Reckless Ametrine
Yellow Quick King’s Amber
Yellow Smooth King’s Amber
Of course, that’s just what’s popular now, and that’s just a sample from 6 realms.
Use WoWhead.com data engine to find the best gems and focus on those and the 2nd best. There’s your bread and butter. Of all the AH competition, gems are the fiercest. Always sell your gems at 12 hours, especially at peak hours and seasons. Keeps stashes of uncut gems to tailor make upon requests, and of course, for your farming empire.
Enchanting
With taking some of the gusto from the inscriptionist, you can now buy vellums from vendors, and cheaply, too. Keep your eye on your LilSparky helper, and on the pulse of the AH, and there shouldn’t be too much issue getting your GP rolling in. And again, here’s the short list of popular enchants:
Chest Enchant Chest – Powerful Stats
Hands Enchant Gloves – Exceptional Spellpower
Bracer Enchant Bracers – Superior Spellpower
Finger Enchant Ring – Greater Spellpower
Back Enchant Cloak – Greater Speed
Main Hand Enchant Weapon – Mighty Spellpower
Boots Enchant Boots – Icewalker
Again, this list will change more often than not. Many players focus on getting faster attacks, hitting harder, and slowing the enemy down. Just like JCs, keep stashs of materials around for custom crafting and your empire.
Auction House Battle Ground
The core of your farming empire will be your mule. Now that we got all our “employees” in place or on their way, it’s time to focus on our Hub. With all traffic moving in and out of this mule, he will be busy.
Step #1 Scan. That’s a given. Scan once before you start for the day. Scan again before you log off. Got a few momnets doing nothing? Scan. Waiting for your raid to form? Scan. Need a bio break? Scan. Wife needs some one on one time with you? Scan. You get the idea. Everytime you scan you add to the data. The more data, the more accurate your prices are going to be.
The best ratio of getting gold is by farming. Farming for AH gold requires only your time, and everything you rake in from the AH is profit. However, the bulk of your gold will come from resale. You put money up to buyout an auction, you get it, and resell it for more cash. There is an art to it that no guide can teach you. It’s a skill you got to learn on your own.
If you only dealt with, say, ore, and you knew your ore sales inside and out, then I would advise to resale strictly everything that deals with ore. You know how to recognize a good buyout versus **** you know won’t move. You would be the ore king. I wouldn’t ask you to move a couple stacks cloth for maximum profit, because it is not your specialty. Having the empire at hand giving you everything, you can expand your markets easily and get to know your server’s AH.
Through my previous post, I had you put together a team of farmers, each with gathering professions. Ore, Cloth, Herbs, Skins, and Scales — you have each foundation covered. As your farmers skill up, so do you. Putting yourself in the position and knowing, through experience, what crafters need will allow you to properly stack your goods, price your posts, and appraise under costed items for their true value without the aid of your addons. And that’s a talent that is learned through experience, not text book knowledge.
All I can do now is give a few tips before I leave you to your new empire.
Your resale option in auctioneer is found under the search tab in the AH. Set your profit and how much discount you are looking for. Go for the items you know. Keep in mind that some items are very rare and don’t see much time in the AH, much less if you happen to scan it just right when it’s on. On the main AH page set the search for epic or rares and pick a level (more on that next). Hit a quick search and filter the items not on “Pct” but on “Buy Each” having the cheapest items on top. Scan the list by eye for way under priced items. These items will not be found on the Auctioneer scanner or resale list.
Know your levels. Plates and mails are great sales at level 40 through 50. People are willing to pay higher for these items. Same goes for level 58-60and level 68-70 gear.
In the old days, Blizzard grouped the Battle Grounds in levels of 10. They shortened that. Keep the rules of 4’s and 9’s. Gear for level x4 and x9 (ie 49, 34, 29, 64, etc.) should always be priced higher than normal because of the PvP **** bent on Honor Points will play with everything to their advantage. Twink these items for extra gold and gear them for smashmouth BG.
Find resist gear and set the bar higher. Maxing out resist is so much more beneficial than more players realize, but those who do will pay the extra gold for it. In battle, use everything to your advantage.
Double check those recipes. Profession recipes found in drop out in the field are heavy hitters in the AH. Because of the rarity of the drop, green and blue recipes should be bought up and resold respectively higher. Understand that these are bait for high rollers, unless you are feeling charitable. Anything not learned from a vendor or trainer should be treated as such.
On heavy population nights, spend some time in trade chat and listen to what the people are requesting. Not enough leather to go around? Guess what. I’m buying it all up and reselling it higher. Someone complaining that a high volume item is flooded. Then I’ll buy out all the blue and green listed items, and repost them the first thing the next day, after the market cleared a bit. Learn to react to the mood of the market.
Well, that’s it. I’m tapped for now. If you’re saying to yourself “What? But I want to know more!,” then, well, this is the short version. I can’t give away all my secrets; you might be playing on my server. 😉
What I have given you is the all the tools and tips you need to never starve on WoW ever again, even from level 1. I leave it up to you to create your own empire on your own luck and abilities. With the best of wishes, your AH will now belong to you. Go forth. Kick ***. Take Names.
Until next time….
**Personal World Destroyer does not actually destroy worlds. Any physical likeness or characteristics resembling Chuck Norris is purely coincidental and unintentional. Batteries not included.