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Saving My WoW MoneyThe most important step in being able to buy a mount and make other large purchases should be self-evident: saving. Economize as often as you can, and don't buy anything unless you absolutely have to. You can burn through hundreds of gold even before level 30 by visiting the auction house for new equipment at every opportunity. If you do so, over the long haul you will be left with very little to show for it. Before level 30, keep your eyes on the prize: getting that mount. The mount helps you move faster. Faster movement means faster killing, faster quest turn-ins, and faster leveling. It is the most important tool to fast leveling you can get at level 30, and infinitely more important than getting your hands on that Left-Handed Vorpal Cleaver of the Zipswitch that you could have purchased at level 23. Stay focused. The same goes for the level 60 mount. An elite ground mount means still-faster leveling. Not only that, but you'll get knocked off considerably less often by mobs while getting around inside zones, meaning you'll die less often as well. So it behooves you to get one as rapidly as possible. Once your character makes it to Outland, cashflow frees up considerably. The quest rewards are much better than in Azeroth. In fact, a typical character will earn from 1000-1200 in quest rewards and vendor trash while leveling 60-70. The tendency is, therefore, to spend more freely. However, it is important for players not to go crazy on their spending once they make it to Hellfire. For one thing, training costs, repair costs, and consumable costs are also higher. More important, there is a large purchase that you are going to want to make right away when you hit 70, and that's your first flying mount. That "bird" not only costs 900 , but it's also required for Karazhan attunement (which necessitates your making a trip to Arcatraz). Therefore, budgeting carefully during the 60-70 leveling process is essential to ensuring you have sufficient cash on hand for making that purchase. Here are some things to consider when budgeting your money: Bank AltCreating a level 1 alt and running it to the nearest capital city just to stand by the mailbox is an effective way to not only cheaply increase your available bank space, but to be a simple savings account. Figure out how much you want to have on-hand on your character based on how much you normally spend on repairs, food, ammo, etc. and send the rest to the bank alt. The principle here is "Out of sight, out of mind.". Money "you don't have" cannot be spent, requiring you to log out of your character, and then to log into the alt. Other advantages include near-instant access to the Auction House, and freeing up your inventory whenever you're near a mailbox for only 30 a slot. Even if you accidentally send the wrong item to the bank alt, it can be returned-to-sender for free. It's very quick, due to the fact that sending mail between characters on the same account is always instant. Economizing on ProfessionsImproper leveling of your production profession skills can cost a small fortune. Heck, even proper leveling of some production skills can cost a small fortune. And keep in mind that equipment you produce using your profession will typically be slightly worse than equipment otherwise obtainable at your level via the Auction House and/or instances. It is therefore strongly recommended not to take on a production trade skill until you hit at least level 30, or better yet, level 70. However, if you are determined to take on such a profession (particularly under level 30), read a suitable leveling guide in order to gain whatever skill level you desire for the least amount of money. Getting Good Equipment Without Breaking the BankThe most important part of saving is to never buy equipment unless you're positive that it will increase your earning potential, or significantly speed your character's leveling progress. While it is true that gear is important (particularly for melee combat characters), it is also true that an overemphasis on having great gear before level 70 is dumb. Who cares if you're wearing a green sword at level 43? If you're advancing well, you aren't going to be level 43 for very long anyway. The only gear that "counts" is level 70 gear. The two best ways to get good equipment are:
A common mistake of new players is to upgrade their gear at every opportunity, paying for a new piece even if it will only add one or two new stat points over an existing item. Likewise, investing in headgear, neckwear, trinkets, and rings at the earliest available levels can also consume valuable cash. While it might seem foolish to leave an available slot empty, you will eventually find something to fill it. In the mean time, the 1 or more you save will serve you well if you invest it wisely. The bottom line is that one can easily level all the way to 70 relying on just quest/drop greens, though instance blues help a fair bit, especially if it's your first time. This is not to say that you should never buy gear. Having equipment that is reasonably current while leveling allows you to kill enemies faster, and die less often in the process. Faster leveling = sooner to higher levels (where the real money is to be made). Likewise, death = loss of time. And, as we all know, "Time is money, friend!" So, players should not hesitate to make well-considered equipment acquisitions during their leveling up, but only if they represent a substantial improvement over their existing equipment and if the price is right. Try to find good deals. It should go without saying that you should never purchase any equipment from vendors; always use the Auction House. Look several levels above and below your own for bargains. Don't buy items that you won't hold onto for at least 4-5 levels. And don't always use the buyout option at the AH. Some of the best deals come from bidding and being patient. If you know there's an item that would be great for you, say, five levels from now, keep your eye out for it and bid on it, several times if need be. When you get it, stuff it away for later. If you plan on doing battlegrounds, hold off upgrading until you are near the upper end of the bracket, where it will make some difference. The brackets run from 10 to 19, 20 to 29, etc. You will need to be near the top of the bracket and have good gear in order to compete (really, you will die anyway if you are not a twink), so planning to upgrade at that time makes sense. Note that these general principles do not apply to blue or purple items. If you are a first-time player, there is absolutely no reason to purchase these items. None. Sub-70 rare and epic items are only for the alts or twinks of established players that have money to waste (because that's what it is) by showing off their Staff of Jordan (or whatever). Blues and purples are completely cost-ineffective for first-time characters. Within a few levels, you will find green gear that is roughly comparable, or you'll get better blues from instance runs at the same level. So, do not buy these items, under any circumstances, if you are a first-time character (no matter how cool they look). And even if you're reasonably well-off financially, think twice. This is especially true as your character gets closer to level 58. Even the most basic quest-reward gear in Outland will have substantially better stats than anything you can buy off the AH for a level 56 character. As such, smart players stop making AH gear purchases by about level 54 or so, and then just gut it out until level 58. Within the first several quests in Hellfire peninsula you'll have replaced half of your gear in any case, guaranteed. Buying Items on the Auction HouseThe Auction House is always the best option for getting good equipment at a good price. The only items you should be buying from Vendors are basic consumables: food, water, arrows, bullets, vials, dyes, etc. Everything else should come from the Auction House, because it's better and cheaper. Keep these tips in mind when buying items off the Auction House:
Anyone who is serious about using the Auction House should get the Auctioneer addon. Auctioneer assists players in the auction house by automatically gathering price information for your server. Among other things, Auctioneer offers the following useful features:
Many players find Auctioneer to be an invaluable addition to WoW with regards to trading on the auction house. This is true especially for inexperienced players who can't correctly judge the value of an item yet. Also, since Auctioneer uses data collected on the specific realm the player is on, it is more reliable with regards to the current market situation than databases such as Allakhazam and Thottbot, which base their pricing information on global market data. Get it. Use it. Maximizing Training Bang for the BuckThere are a lot of skills and spells you can train as you progress. However, not all of them are useful. As a mage, do you really think you need to invest 88 20 into the first two ranks of Amplify Magic? Are you still using Heroic Strike at level 32 as a warrior? As a feral Druid do you really need to learn Starfire? Think long and hard about how valuable each skill is before splurging on them. This goes doubly for trade skills. If you are dead set on leveling a production trade skill instead of taking two of the gathering skills, remember that not everything your trainer offers is worth buying. While it might be nice to have a long list of colorful shirts and dresses to produce as a tailor, for instance, the truth is they offer very little in the way of potential revenue. Also keep in mind that, generally, whatever items you craft at lower levels will not likely sell for more money than you could have made by simply selling the raw materials used to make them. For this reason, two gathering skills are highly recommended until you get closer to 70 (60 if you don't have the TBC expansion).
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