A bargain diamond in the AH rough
by Mike Schramm 
Jan 3rd 2008 at 5:00PM
I can't say I shop the AH enough to spot a great deal when I see one (I mostly just use the AH to offload all the BoE junk I collect, and Auctioneer watches prices for me easily enough), but I can appreciate the feeling frostaholic talks about here: just like opening up a loot window and seeing that drop you've always wanted, there's definitely a thrill in finding a long-awaited AH bargain.And I don't know that we've talked about Bottomscanner in any depth before, but that's exactly what the addon is designed for-- given the price information from Auctioneer, you can hit a button in Bottomscanner, and the addon will scour the Auction House for any items that are priced for less than they're worth. It's automatic speculation, really, and while it only works because not everyone is using Auctioneer (because if everything was priced right, no one would find it cheap), it can be used to find good deals.
But still, there's nothing like finding a diamond in the AH rough yourself. Checking the AH for an item and then finding it one day for half the price you expected to pay-- that's an entire realm of excitement in this game by itself.
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Tips, Odds and ends, Economy, Making money
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Septih Jan 3rd 2008 5:15PM
After watching the AH for the final furies card i need (8) and watching it come down slowly from to 200, I finally saw it going for only 25g! ... On my alts server :( (still sold it for a big profit)
Oldbear Jan 3rd 2008 5:24PM
Bottomscanner is great... I log on while doing other things in the house, as it dings when it finds something. It's great for finding deals or when used with "Enchantrix" can be a huge benefit to level your enchanting for a few less gold.
Madcap Jan 3rd 2008 5:37PM
I recently went through the trouble of assembling a full Blessings deck for my warlock, and the seven was one of the last cards I needed. After weeks of not seeing anything, I found one on the AH for fifty silver. This was on a weekend, too.
vlad Jan 3rd 2008 5:57PM
lawl. i love you guys!!!!! i buy several of a decent item and mark it up 1000% for a few days. then sell it for 500% less then i listed it for all week (after you all get lots of scans in and it taints the bottom scanner). all the auctioneers think they are getting a deal for 500% less while im making a 500% profit and you all get stuck with something you cant sell unless you take a 400% loss.
thank you for all your money :)
Xeren Jan 3rd 2008 8:20PM
exactly why i don't use bottom scanner blindly- once it finds something i use my judgement on whether it's actually a good deal
Meyl Jan 3rd 2008 6:03PM
I frequently see people putting up auctions with ridiculously high prices to taint the Auctioneer data, as Vlad described.
Bottomscanner is a wonderful tool - but it is no substitute for your brain.
SaintStryfe Jan 3rd 2008 6:47PM
I don't trust Bottomscanner. i do it myself -
Scan, list, and then use my brain and experience.
I kept 4 characters in the best AH greens and blues, epiced out my 70 Shaman (for the few things I didn't want to get via PVP or drops), Epic Flyer, plus top-level Cooking, First aid, JC and Engineering. Have about 4000g in the bank right now. I should level my lower-level alts so I can use some of that cash.
Cal Jan 3rd 2008 7:47PM
5 Preserved Holly for 10s. Not too much of a deal, but still a very nice find. I don't use Auctioneer at the moment, but I'm planning to get it soon. I usually place my greens for 150% of the original AH bid price then around double it for buyout. I don't know if someone's got an amazing deal off of it, but I guess it wouldn't work for stuff like Ores, etc..
Farris917 Jan 3rd 2008 7:21PM
mine will trump you all. Staff of Jordan. Epic. For only 10g. I scooped it up in a mini second. I later realized it was my buddy who sold it (a new person to the game and really didn't know what he was doing.) It was later when I bought him his mount because I have mass money from my copper/skin farming.
But still man, who ever sees something purple...with TWO digits?
SaintStryfe Jan 3rd 2008 8:46PM
not an unregular basis... of course, doing AH trading a lot, it's not rare to find deals. I make my bread and butter trading
peaglemancer Jan 4th 2008 9:01AM
Void crystals, what are they, 10 copper now?
Whaaaaa? Jan 3rd 2008 7:34PM
I found a "Nightwatchman" epic rogue helm listed for 16G one night by someone with the apt name of "Stupid".
I sold it for 1,400 G. Helped finance my epic flyer.
I make sure to check my zeros when I list expensive things now.
TDurden Jan 3rd 2008 7:45PM
Best deal I ever found was recently. Purchased a Badge of Tenacity for 50g (currently considered one of the best druid tanking trinkets in the game), turned around and sold it for a cool 1100g on the AH.
mcsaeki Jan 3rd 2008 7:47PM
I'm a bit of an AH freak - I enjoy it far more than raiding - so I'm there all the time and often find nice deals.
The best: I bought [The Green Tower] for 49S99C.
Eternalpayn Jan 3rd 2008 9:44PM
I'm usually the one giving people deals. Not because I'm stupid. It makes money faster, and helps other people make a quick reselling buck. For example, when winter's veil started, I made and sold 50+ sets of 5 Gingerbread Cookies. They were going for 5g for 5, and I started selling at 1.75g. I sold them faster than I could make them, making 80g in a matter of 20 minutes.
tripp Jan 3rd 2008 10:04PM
Solid Star of Elune recipe for 15 g
glorft Jan 3rd 2008 10:48PM
Epics with double digits? Try epics with SINGLE digits: nabbed Blackskull Shield for 8g. I know its crap but the only other epic you see for under 10g is the much undesired Nexus Crytal. Also, scored the Pattern for Drums of Restoration for a mere 12g back when it was a world drop. Funny how we're all gloating about other people's AH mistfortunes :P
knulpm Jan 3rd 2008 10:59PM
In ye old days I found a complete Warlord's Deck on the AH for 5 gold. Not sure what happened there. Sold it for 220 a few days later.
Og Jan 4th 2008 12:15AM
BottomScanner can be a tough add-on to wrangle with for the casual browser in the AH. That's a key tool in the Auctioneer Advanced suite of tools when it's combined with frequent scans of the AH. But there are enough configuration options to make your eyes glaze over if you don't want to spend too much time in the AH (I love it).
A better tool for most just starting out is Auctioneer Classic which is more intuitive and simpler.
It takes a little practice. With little effort you can really bring in some great coin to compensate for all those greys you pick up beating up on mobs.
Finding a great deal in the AH is almost as much fun as mowing down Horde in battlegrounds.
Almost.
Og
http://ogsledger.blogspot.com
Tyy Jan 4th 2008 1:25AM
In the early days of raiding, where people went into MC and BWL, I accidentically sold a [Hide of the Wild] cloak for 3g 75s 99c instead of 375g 99s.