Tuesday, 29 April 2008
Fisherman and fisherwoman
Fishing was my favourite activity when I started playing WoW. It was the one thing I got the hang of quickly and it was both relaxing and easy. The first main detractor came when I couldn't get a hold of the fishing guide sold in Booty Bay because I was too low level to get to Booty Bay. I did swim and still remember that swim as my worst experience to date in Warcraft. I know it's not a big deal for others and these days it wouldn't be a big deal for me, but I was new and scared and awkward and the one thing could easily do became the one thing that really pushed all my anxiety buttons. Needless to say, fishing has never been the same since.
Recently, I have tried to get back into it. I have managed to level up two characters past the artisan quest, but I seem to have lost the appetite for it. I still log in regularly as a druid and stand in Moonglade for ten minutes, but I am no longer good at it. In fact, I am now pretty bad at it and I have the lack of level to show for that. Now playing in the level 50's I am finding that less and less things are doable in my 45 minute play slots. Half the time is taken up by traveling from Shattrath City to where I am questing. It has nurtured a new desire to take up fishing again - but where to start? The internet, of course.
I found a great site for info after just a few minutes of browsing: El's Extreme Anglin' and I'm remember why I loved fishing to begin with.
Recently, I have tried to get back into it. I have managed to level up two characters past the artisan quest, but I seem to have lost the appetite for it. I still log in regularly as a druid and stand in Moonglade for ten minutes, but I am no longer good at it. In fact, I am now pretty bad at it and I have the lack of level to show for that. Now playing in the level 50's I am finding that less and less things are doable in my 45 minute play slots. Half the time is taken up by traveling from Shattrath City to where I am questing. It has nurtured a new desire to take up fishing again - but where to start? The internet, of course.
I found a great site for info after just a few minutes of browsing: El's Extreme Anglin' and I'm remember why I loved fishing to begin with.
Monday, 28 April 2008
Everlook: Gadgetzan in the snow
I still find it eerie how similar architecture pop up all over the game. I understand why and do not object, I just find it eerie.
Everlook in Winterspring is no exception. The architectural design of Gadgetzan was perfect for it's location. It immediate stole a place in my hard, possibly due to its very Tatooineesqueness. (Yes, I know that's not a real word.) Tatooine is one of those very real fantacy places, thanks to the overwhelming influence and introduction via C, that goes down as one of the greatest places ever.
Seeing the desert style city transported into snowladen Winterspring is just off somehow. It does not quite fit. But judge for yourself which city has the best feel to it:
Everlook in Winterspring is no exception. The architectural design of Gadgetzan was perfect for it's location. It immediate stole a place in my hard, possibly due to its very Tatooineesqueness. (Yes, I know that's not a real word.) Tatooine is one of those very real fantacy places, thanks to the overwhelming influence and introduction via C, that goes down as one of the greatest places ever.
Seeing the desert style city transported into snowladen Winterspring is just off somehow. It does not quite fit. But judge for yourself which city has the best feel to it:
Nothing is free
I hear time and time again in the general, guild and trade channel the advice "don't pay good money in the auction house, go and farm it, it's free". But it's not free and I am not talking about the flight costs and battle expenses such as potions, food and drinks, although those should not be discounted. Just because you didn't pay for something, does not make it free. Every item you use is an item that has a market value and could have been sold for real virtual gold in your pocket, I mean bag.
Nothing is free. You may not pay for it in a way that is easy to understand, but you pay for it by not making money from it. In effect, that's very similar than paying for since it's potential earnings out of your pocket. You make not have any less money right now, but tomorrow you will have less money than you could have had if you sold the item instead. Nothing is free.
That brings me to the second point. Time is money. If you are going to farm, then farm for the most expensive thing you can at your level. Don't spend hours chasing birds for a hundred or more feathers that could have been bought for a few gold, if not silver. Farm where the money is, sell your farmed goods and then buy the feathers on the AH if you must.
Whether you farm, craft or work the AH, don't forget the hidden costs: auction deposits lost, the auctioneer cut, postage (30 bronze a pop do add up), the cost of levelling up professions, the cost of recipes and mats, travelling costs etc. I am far from a penny pincher, my postage tallies up to gold very quickly, but I do watch for small savings when I can. I hand things over to someone I play with, log out, log in the alt and then ask the person to hand the stuff to the alt - postage saved. I quest and build up good rep so that my flights and goods are discounted wherever I go. I try to stock up my regular supply where I have the highest rep and the largest discounts. I loot for health and mana potions as well as food and drink - or ask my very local mage to supply me free of charge. I buy recipes from vendors and trainers and plan my route before I set out to minimize travelling costs. Small things that accumulate to save me money.
I don't play the game to stockpile gold, I accumulate gold to play the game as it should be played - with good gear, full supplies and life's luxuries (potions and enchants for me) for pure indulgence sake. I spend my solo time making money so that when I play for fun with C, we can not worry about the money. Now that's how the game should be played.
Nothing is free. You may not pay for it in a way that is easy to understand, but you pay for it by not making money from it. In effect, that's very similar than paying for since it's potential earnings out of your pocket. You make not have any less money right now, but tomorrow you will have less money than you could have had if you sold the item instead. Nothing is free.
That brings me to the second point. Time is money. If you are going to farm, then farm for the most expensive thing you can at your level. Don't spend hours chasing birds for a hundred or more feathers that could have been bought for a few gold, if not silver. Farm where the money is, sell your farmed goods and then buy the feathers on the AH if you must.
Whether you farm, craft or work the AH, don't forget the hidden costs: auction deposits lost, the auctioneer cut, postage (30 bronze a pop do add up), the cost of levelling up professions, the cost of recipes and mats, travelling costs etc. I am far from a penny pincher, my postage tallies up to gold very quickly, but I do watch for small savings when I can. I hand things over to someone I play with, log out, log in the alt and then ask the person to hand the stuff to the alt - postage saved. I quest and build up good rep so that my flights and goods are discounted wherever I go. I try to stock up my regular supply where I have the highest rep and the largest discounts. I loot for health and mana potions as well as food and drink - or ask my very local mage to supply me free of charge. I buy recipes from vendors and trainers and plan my route before I set out to minimize travelling costs. Small things that accumulate to save me money.
I don't play the game to stockpile gold, I accumulate gold to play the game as it should be played - with good gear, full supplies and life's luxuries (potions and enchants for me) for pure indulgence sake. I spend my solo time making money so that when I play for fun with C, we can not worry about the money. Now that's how the game should be played.
Leatherworking Profits
Each day of playing leave me with a colder chill when I open up my crafting professions screen. It takes so much effort and work to first find the pattern and then the mats and before I know it, someone else is crafting ten and dumbing it on the AH and profits plummet. I enjoy crafting and will not want to give it completely, but I do think it's time to seriously evaluate how much money it can make me, or more likely, how much money it is costing me.
- First rule of crafting - never buy patterns off the auction house for anything other than personal use.
- Second rule of crafting - never buy patterns off the auction house that is available at a vendor
- Third rule of crafting - never craft if the mats will sell for more unless profit is not the number one goal
- Fourth rule of crafting - never pay market price or higher for any mats
- Fifth rule of crafting - never join the undercutting madness, either hold back your item or place it up for the usual price. Once the undercutting frenzy subsides, customers will return to your goods that are always there.
Winterspring
After much grinding and feather farming I finally achieved a neutral reputation with Timbermaw Hold. Not that I can buy any patters yet, but it does mean I may walk through the hold unharmed from Felwood to Winterspring. Since this is the only real route to Winterspring, it is quite a personal achievement. The tunnel is pretty as tunnels go and on first glance, Winterspring turned out to be as beautiful as people say it is. I think I am going to enjoy questing here.
Auction House Style
I fully support personal freedoms, such as the freedom to self-expression, as long as your freedom does not encroach on mine. But being the girl that I am, I find the multitudes of naked auction toons running around the capitals mind boggling. Part of me instinctively wants to say that only men could create a tradition of toons in lingerie, but that would be a sexist generalization. The business suit does it for me. I have my Ironforge Auction Toon neatly dressed in a three piece with matching black shoes and only regret that I did not pick a little more stylish hair-do during creation. I have grown very fond of her, little gold digger that she is. The least I can do is dress her nicely.
