Gold Makers: Wojan #1

Today we release a special issue, that is not about role play. We are very happy to bring you an interview with Wojan, who is one of the top Gold Makers on Argent Dawn. Enjoy!

Firewire: You are one of the top gold makers on AD. You told me that you sell over 3,400 items at the moment. My first question would be, why is your in-game avatar a Troll and not a Goblin. What is the Troll background of Trading?

Wojan: That is a good question. My game avatar is a Troll because this character is a druid and the poor Goblins do not have the connection to the nature that this character needs. Both for IC and OOC reasons! I would assume there is a lot of inter-tribe trading and the likes and trade between the Horde that is carried out by the hardy Trolls of Azeroth. I am also quite fond of Trolls myself, they are fun to RP!

Firewire: Would you share some of this IC and OOC reasons with us. Specifically the OOC reasons sound very interesting to me.

Wojan: Well the IC reasons would be that I quite like the survivalist nature of the Trolls. Be it in Northrend where they fought against the Scourge or in Stranglethorn Vale where they fought against each other and the jungle itself ... Might be entirely wrong there. I like how they went from vast empires to shambles and how cults and 'revivals' have fueled them. There seems to be a lot of rage with the Trolls and yet we see with the Darkspear that there is also a lot of kindness and bravery for the Horde. The IC reasons would be that I wanted a shady cruel and possibly evil Troll to ply wares all over Azeroth!

Firewire: What brought you into gold making?

Wojan: That is kind of funny. My better half was telling me about how much gold she had and I am a bit competitive so I decided I would eventually make more gold than her. Now I have just ended up paying for a lot of the things she wants, so I suppose in the end I lost ... or won?

Firewire: So you girlfriend also plays WoW? Is she into gold making too? Or did she stop when you became successful?

Wojan: Heh, she does indeed play WoW though not as much as before I suppose. She was into making gold but when I became successful at it she found a new source of gold in a way. Though gold making over long periods of time is not for everyone. Though everyone could if they give it a try.

Firewire: What helped you in learning the gold game?

Wojan: It was google that helped me find this guy called "Phatlewts" as silly as the name might sound he had some good videos and from there I found his network of other people 'like him' and I ended up following some advice and the use of some addons from there. Beyond that I suppose having a genuine interest in learning how to make gold with the Auction House really helped as well, it is like doing dailies ... not for everyone. (I cannot stand dailies).

Firewire: How long are you in the business?

Wojan: I have been in the gold making 'business' since I think ... the end of Mists of Pandaria. So almost a year now!

Firewire: How much gold do you have atm?

Wojan: I have a million gold. Though I am usually a bit below as whenever I hit gold-cap on Wojan I spend a bunch to get below so that I can just keep making gold on him without having to move it. I suppose I have a bit more as I have some gold on other characters and on Alliance characters as well. 

Firewire: How much gold is gold cap anyway?

Wojan: I think it is nine hundred and ninety thousand nine hundred and ninety nine gold! I might have written that wrong as English is not my first language but it is one gold shy of a million gold, gold cap per character that is.

Firewire: What is your favorite market and why?

Wojan: Well I focus on transmog items. I used to do jewel crafting stuff and mining back in the day but the return was not as big as I'd like. Especially compared to time. So I do transmog items now. It is my favorite market because it involves a bit less work on my part, reselling things that have already been listed. Like if five people post something at eight hundred gold and then someone posts one for like ten gold, then you've quickly made your gold back and more. Do that around three-thousand four hundred times and you've got yourself a small fortune that grows almost on its own. After hours of posting it all.

Firewire: Do you do the gold game only because of the gold, or is it fun also?

Wojan: I do the 'gold game' because I like making gold. Having more and more is kind of fun to me. I also like that it takes a lot of knowledge to actually be 'good' at using the Auction House to make gold. It requires a lot of knowledge to really get going if you're aiming for the top. Though you can also just get into it to make gold and still make a respectable amount. I have also had the pleasure of being able to help people. Looking for gear for them and seeing if I've got something in stock. Slashing a price by two thirds for someone that really wants an item but are lacking gold. Or giving people that are important to me gold and items if I feel like it. You could say a lot of the 'fun' comes from being able to give people stuff and even though they feel like it is a great gift, I am only giving away a little bit but I can still be glad I made someones day, or hour.

Firewire: What is your favorite Auction House and why?

Wojan: My favorite auction house is the one in Booty Bay. Not only can you stand in one spot and get access to the mailbox, the guild bank, the bank and the auctioneer without ever having to move. But you've got the cool music, the Goblins and the awesomeness and view that is the Stranglethorn Vale and its lovely crummy goblin 'barony'. I have also had people approach me for RP, in-character when I am doing my auctions and spontaneous RP has happened from there. So Booty Bay has a lot of great functionality and RP happening at times. It is also a place where I get to /ruffle some of my competition as they also use it. Which is great!

Firewire: Would you say that more Gold Makers would be good or bad for business? And would you have any tips to share for starters?

Wojan: I would say it is good. More competition means better prices for the 'consumer' and an economy that does not sometimes bend to the prices of some of the people that love to post things for tens of thousands of gold just to hike up prices. *Shakes fist* I have helped a fair few people getting into gold-making and I would be insane to do that if I did not want more competition. So I think it is very good for business. Any tips I might have to share ... I suppose not giving up is very important, sometimes you make some gold and sometimes you go in the red if you will. Some days are spectacular and some days you screw up. I use Tradeskillmaster, which is a great addon. Though it requires a lot of time to set up initially and it cannot replace your own knowledge and yourself in general so I would say that getting to know the market you are in, in and out is very important. Phatlewts has a blog that I think makes for good reading. His videos and blog-posts gave me some insight I still use to this day.

Firewire: Legion. How do you think will the transmog changes in Legion change the market?

Wojan: I am not entirely sure, of course. Though what I do believe is that it might put a damper on some sales, though in the end Argent Dawn is a huge server and as such there is always a need for new times, by the boat-load. I have not really read that much about the transmog changes but it is certainly something I will keep an eye on. Ask me closer to launch and I might have a better answer, heh.

Firewire: Are there any game changes you would like to see from Blizzard concerning the gold game? To make the gold game more fun?

Wojan: Beyond some quality of life stuff and some new features to the Auction House to not make making gold off the auction house a bit easier for a new user. The functionality of addons compared to 'vanilla' Auction House is insane and is surely a reason why some people do not get into it. Because some things are not in place. So ... I think a revamp to the tools we have for 'normal' AH would be great for new people if anything. Beyond that I cannot really think of anything.

Firewire: Is there any gold maker you know, you'd like to interview me next? And what question would you like to see answered from that person?

Wojan: Well I do know that Theolain/Sareal is both a stellar person, someone that has done the selling of things on the Auction House for longer than me and has done a lot of things for the Blood Elven role playing community and been a very cool addition to Silvermoon City, both now and in the past. When it comes to question I think that "Do you ever think you'll stop making gold and either sell or let your items expire?" Because it is certainly quite the hassle and time-investment to acquire a lot of items to sell and making gold can be addictive at times.

Firewire: Is there anything else you want to share or add? Any shout outs?

Wojan: Well, if anyone has any questions about making gold or would like to learn a bit about how I do it. Everyone should feel free to assault me with questions. It should also be said that if you ever see an auction sold by "Wojan" then the price is 100 % negotiable and before you know it, it could be slashed in half. So never be afraid to poke me when I am on Wojan! Beyond that I would like to shout out to all of my friends, you know who you are. You are all amazing.

Firewire: Thank you so much for your time and this interview. I hope you had at least half as much fun as I had doing it.

Wojan: It was a lot of fun to be honest. I quite liked the questions! It is funny how you compliment someone on their interviews and before you know it you're in one. I hope it will make more people get into the 'Auction house game' as one might call it!