The Inflation of WoW Gold and Why You Should Care

While it has only been a few weeks since the release of Battle for Azeroth, the game's economy is already going bonkers. Sure, that's to be expected with all the updates and the ‘soft reset' of crafting resources and crafted items in the Auction House. There's also the rush of new and returning players which muddles things even more. To sum the problem up, the price of WoW Gold relative to real money has plummeted. You may think this expansion's economy problem won't affect you because it didn't before. Well, there were factors and circumstances during those expansions that kept things stable. They protected the majority of players from inflation's effects.

Things are different now, so you have to be ready.

But First, Let's Look Back

During the days of Legion, the announcement that WoW tokens could be redeemed for Blizzard credit should've had the same effect. However, here are some circumstances that kept prices stable.

First, the value of goods and gold stayed the same relative to each other. Factoring into this is the fact that the announcement came about six months after the launch of the expansion. By that time, players have leveled up their professions and established trade supplies.

Then, Legion was the expansion that introduced flying and aerial travel routes. Farming resources and traveling became more efficient, increasing the gold output of players. Combine that efficiency with how Blizzard made gathering easy and you get a sustainable trade.

Lastly, even though it's illegal, botters were able to provide enough goods and resources to keep things in balance.

Because of all the circumstances listed above, prices were stable enough even as the demand for more tokens increased. A surplus of goods offset the surplus of gold. Thus, casual players didn't feel or see anything amiss.

And Now, Let's Look Forward

Circumstances for Battle for Azeroth are quite different. For one thing, Blizzard is making ingredients scarcer again. Players need the Anchor Weed to create the newer flasks, but they're found randomly in place of other herbs. With the influx of new and returning players, demand for new equipment and consumables will spike hard. It'll intensify once players start running the mythic+ dungeons and raids.

The problem is, everybody's still leveling up, either in professions or character level. Otherwise, they're exploring the new content, quests, and locations. They're not prioritizing collecting and crafting yet. That means a scarcity of trade goods and a high demand for it. All of this contributes to the plummet in the value of gold relative to real money. To sum it all up, there's a surplus of gold, but not enough supplies.

Expect and prepare for expensive goods. You might have to shell out real money for some stuff. Then again, it would be difficult to sell tokens since it'll be expensive. At any rate, it'll be tough trying to get stuff from the AH. The economy will settle soon enough, so just hold on until then.

See you in the battlefields of Azeroth!