Okay i know im probably going to get about a million responses. but with what spec are you guys seeing the highest dps. I am talking since this last patch (4.0.3 where they nurfed all lock dmg by 12%)

This is a guide on AH entrepreneurship I wrote for MMO Champion, I suspect the average intelligent user here to find it quite useful. A new thread is probably not required, so I'm posting this in here.

In this article I will cover the basics of Auction House entrepreneurship, and will touch on some advanced topics that even experts can learn from.

Table of Contents:

1. Getting started.
2. Auctioneer searches.
   • Snatch
   • Resale
   • Arbitrage
3. Realtime searches.
4. Advanced: 24/7 TUJ Realtime search and email notifications.

1. Getting Started

The first thing you need to do is grab Auctioneer.

Where the entrepreneur is concerned, Auctioneer is an add-on that records historical pricing data for all Auction House items. It comes with a comprehensive set of tools that allow you to analyze this data and make purchases accordingly. It is a very powerful and often overwhelming tool, but its basic features allow even a casual player to generate profit from its use. If you find the add-on a little heavy at first, you can disable several of Auctioneer's modules, and activate them one-by-one once you're comfortable moving on.

One of the very first things you need to do is collect data. You'll need 1-2 solid weeks of data collection before you can trust what Auctioneer is telling you. Some players will intentionally or inadvertently list worthless items at the AH for absurd prices (also known as poisoning), effectively throwing off Auctioneer pricing and incorrectly flagging some items as "deals". This is why it’s important to build a solid price database. Use discretion and common sense when buying based on Auctioneer recommendations - that 3500g Mutton Chop might look like a good deal to Auctioneer, but we know it isn’t. Conversely, Auctioneer could flag Kang the Decapitator ast "above average" even at 30g - but we know this is a good deal.

Auctioneer can actively collect data through Scan or through Getall. Scan checks every page of the AH one-by-one, and is very time-intensive, and I can't remember the last time I ran one of these. I recommend Getall, a function that allows you to download all AH data at once. To run a Getall search, speak to an auctioneer and type /auc getall. The process can take up to 2-3 minutes on slower machines, and well under 30 seconds for fast machines. You can only run a Getall search every 15 minutes, unless you log out and back in.

Running 2-3 searches per day for ~10 days should provide you with an accurate database of most item prices. Database in hand, you can now start looking for items to "flip".

2. Auctioneer Searches

2.1 Resale Search
Auctioneer offers several search modules that look for items fitting certain criteria specified by the user. The simplest is Resale. This search module compares current item prices against recorded item prices. When configured improperly, it can return hundreds - if not thousands - of items. Our goal is to configure the search parameters to return items that have a high resale value, high margins and a low purchase price.

To access the resale search, go under the search tab, expand "searchers" and click "resale". There are several configuration options available to you:

• Minimum Profit: The minimum margin you wish to earn on a purchase. 150g is a good number.
• Min Discount: The minimum discount off the original item price you will accept. I set this to 65%. For example, if you're willing to buy an item for 9kg and flip it for 10kg, set this to 90%.
• Check Seen Count: Ignores all items that have not been "seen" this many times. I use 3, but I'm also very familiar with all items in the game. This option may help avoid the poisoning problem mentioned earlier.
• Enable Individual Maximum Price: Sets a maximum amount you are willing to pay for an item.
• Price Valuation: How Auctioneer will source item prices. Market Price generally does a good job.
• Allow Buyout, Allow Bid, Fees Adjustment: Self-explanatory.

Hit search, and Auctioneer will pull up a list of items that fit your criteria. Here, you can sort by profit or by PCT (percent). I recommend sorting by profit.



In this trial run, Auctioneer has found several items that may be resold at profit. 17 Pound Catfish and Rough Dynamite are clearly the result of data poisoning, and we know that ICC BoEs are quickly dropping in value, so we'll avoid these for the time being. There are several epic recipes on the list, these might be resellable, but they do take a while to move. There was a Cat Carrier (Black Tabby) on this list for 325g, I was very quick to buy it!

Again, I can’t stress enough the importance of knowing what you’re buying before investing. If you don’t recognize an item, WoWhead it before buying. It you think an item's price is way off, you can chose to ignore it completely, or to ignore it at its current listed price. Simply highlight the item, and hit the ignore or ignore price button. Alternatively, you can type /auc clear [itemlink] to purge all data for an given item.

The Resale search has one shortfall: it will not bring up very rare items that can be flipped for astronomical amounts. It will completely overlook beauties like Schematic: Lifelike Mechanical Toad or Recipe: Elixir of Dream Vision because these are seldom seen. The solution? Snatch search!

2.2 Snatch Search

Snatch is a search that checks for specific items under a certain price threshold set by you. For example, you could tell Auctioneer to "snatch" Schematic: Lifelike Mechanical Toad at 3500g and under. If this schematic is found at the AH, Auctioneer would recommend that you purchase it after running a snatch search.

Configuring a snatch search is quite simple. Click Snatch under the search tab, and drop an item into the empty box that appears in the Auctioneer UI. Specify a price, and hit "add item". Building a comprehensive snatch list is an integral part in becoming a successful entrepreneur: if you're looking for some items for your list, look here.

Some players make several extensive snatch lists for literally everything, but I prefer to use it for rare items, letting resale pick up things like epics and crafting materials. Where enchanting materials are concerned, Auctioneer already has a searcher that allows you to find all enchanting materials at the Auction House. You can also make separate snatch lists to suit your needs; one may be for gems, the other for raiding consumables and a third for flipping valuable items.



Snatch searching is relatively straightforward, and if you’re familiar with Resale configuration, setting up snatch should be no problem.

2.3 Arbitrage Search

Cross-faction trading is the act of purchasing items from one faction, smuggling it through the neutral AH, and selling it at the opposing faction’s AH at (hopefully large) profit. Cross-faction trading is one of the most profitable and effective ways to earn gold. There are several disadvantages to x-faction trading, including the risk of having your items “sniped”, and the double-account requirements. It has become very commonplace over the past 2 years, but there is still some great profit to be made in these shady markets.

Configuration is, again, quite similar to Resale, but with a few additional settings:

• Search against: Specify which set of data you’d like to compare your Auctioneer prices.
  • Search type: Select cross-faction. You can select cross-server if you’re transferring and would like to know which items to bring along.
  • Cross-realm additional settings: No need to play with this.

Hit search, and Auctioneer will pull up a list of items that should be profitable when sold cross-faction. As always, be wary of poisoned data;



Auctioneer is showing a commonly flipped pet: Cat Carrier (White Kitten). This item is unavailable to horde players, which explains to the profitability of this flip. Interested in more profitable cross-faction items? Check here.

3. Realtime Search

There is one big problem with Resale, Snatch and Arbitrage; all three searches use data that is “old”. The real deals only sit at the AH for seconds before they are snatched up. Once again, Auctioneer offers a solution; Realtime search. Realtime search is simple – it refreshes the last page of auctions, and scans newly added items against your price database. When a deal is found, Auctioneer notifies you, and all you need to do if press a “buyout” button. It uses the same criteria you set for all searchers, including Snatch, Resale and Arbitrage. Using this feature, you can grab auctions within seconds of their listing at the AH. You might even have players accuse you of “botting” if you’re quick enough.

Note: Realtime search is the bread and butter of neutral AH snipers. For a full guide on protecting your cross-faction goods and deterring cross-faction competitors, click here.

Again, Realtime search uses the parameters you’ve previously set for all searchers. If your Resale search has a 150g threshold, Realtime search will “hook” items under this criteria as well. I recommend disabling most searchers, and using only Resale, Snatch and Arbitrage. You don’t want Auctioneer bothering you whenever it finds a “Bright Belt of the Falcon” that can be disenchanted for a 30 silver profit.

To configure Realtime, go to the search tab -> Options -> Realtime.

• Search while browsing: Will hook items that you might encounter while browsing the AH.
• Enable automatic last page refreshing: Allows Auctioneer to refresh the last page.
  • Reload interval: Interval at which the last page will be refreshed. I set this to the minimum of 6 seconds for a better chance at striking gold.
  • Pause after manual search: If you happen to run a manual search for whatever reason, Auctioneer will wait before resuming automatic last page refreshes.
• Alert settings: How you want Auctioneer to notify you of deals.
  • Show alert in chat window: Allows Auctioneer to put notifications in the chat window. Optional.
  • Show searchUI window: Not sure what this does, but be sure to check it and select a sound to be played when a deal is hooked.
• Power user setting – one click buyout: Check this if you want to buy items with 1 click upon notification. Highly recommended.
• Searchers to use: Uncheck everything but Resale, Snatch and Arbitrage (unless you’re familiar with the other searchers).

Once everything’s configured, initiate the Realtime search by pressing the small magnifying glass in the Browse tab. Auctioneer will start looking for deals and will notify you whenever an item matches the criteria you have specified.

You’ve probably got better things to do than sit in front of the computer and watch Auctioneer cycle through pages. The good news is that you can minimize WoW and Auctioneer will keep running. Set WoW to windowed mode under game menu -> video -> resolution. You’ll also need to enable background sounds, so that you can hear the Auctioneer notifications when a deal is found.

Realtime search is one of my favorite Auctioneer features. I enable it while watching movies, talking on the phone or during lunch. It’s actually running right now, and I just snatched a full set of Argent Tournament pets for 300g each. Sometimes, I’ll set my price thresholds to 5000g and go to sleep – I don’t mind the sound of solid gold waking me up!

Tip: Reduce Realtime Search Reload Time To 1-2 Seconds

4. Advanced: 24/7 TUJ Realtime Search and Email Notifications

I’ve done my fair share of PvE and PvP. I was server first on all Naxx and Ulduar kills, and have hit 2400+ with different comps throughout season 1-4. Lately, my play time has been limited, so I have shifted most of my attention to WoW entrepreneurship. The problem with my schedule is that I’m only around a computer 4-5 hours daily (much less sitting AT the computer), so I end up missing out on a large number of AH deals (boo-hoo, right). It's times like these that I wish someone could scan the AH for me 24/7...

Enter The Undermine Journal!

The Undermine Journal (TUJ) is a tool that persistently scans AH data 24/7. It uses “crawler” accounts to accomplish this, and stores all item pricing details in a central database. This information is then presented to the user through a web GUI found online. Users can request critical information such as detailed profiles of competitors, historical item data pricing, current and past item availability, and other very useful reports. TUJ is only in its beta stages (or alpha?), yet it is already the most powerful tool of its kind.

The most interesting feature offered by TUJ is market notifications. Similar to Auctioneer’s Realtime search, this feature notifies you when an item is found to match criteria as set by the user (likely price or availability). Raiders might use of this feature to find out when flasks are under a certain price range, or by Jewelcrafters seeking cheap Saronite Ore. As an entrepreneur, I'm more interested in when certain rare and lucrative items appear at the AH at price X. In a way, this is a secondary snatch list that is being searched against 24/7.

Market notifications can be sent through email, and soon enough through SMS (text message). If you have access to WoW at work, you can set up notifications through email, and pick up items from your workstation on the go. Most of us can’t access WoW from work, so the other alternative is to use the remote AH for all our buying needs ($2.99 monthly).



Here’s I’m adding Azure Whelpling to my TUJ snatch list, buying at 2500g and under (arbitrary amount). Setting up notifications can be done in 4 easy steps:

• Register at TUJ (it's free, I'm not trying to pull bs affiliate link stuff).
• Set up your account in controls (top left)
• Search the item for which you want to add a notification for.
• Fill out the notification box.
• Done!

In my case, WoW and the remote AH are inaccessible from work, so an alternative plan of attack is needed (and I have one). You will need the following tools:

1. An authenticator.
2. A remote auction house subscription.
3. An iPhone or Android platform smartphone.
4. Consistent Wi-Fi access, or even better, a data plan.

First, register an authenticator to your WoW account, otherwise Blizzard won’t allow you to sign up for the remote AH. Next, install the mobile Auction House app onto your smartphone. The idea is that you can still receive notifications through your phone, and make purchases from this device.

Using the above system, you can make purchases from literally anywhere, at any time, provided you have a data plan or Wi-Fi access. Earlier this week, I was rescuing a child from a conflagration down the street, and simultaneously used my phone to purchase a Teebu’s Blazing Longsword (300g) thanks to TUJ notifications. Life is good!

The only shortfall of this method is that notifications aren’t instant. So far, the “reaction time” of the system is between 10 and 45 minutes, so there’s a good chance someone else will snatch up deals before you do. Remember that the tool is still in its infancy – this reaction time will probably improve greatly as the coders fine-tune the program.

I should probably point out that TUJ does not yet have crawlers for all servers. These are added in batches, and the remaining 136 realms should be added within the month.

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Any questions, just ask!

nobody mentioned that melee dmg got nerfed too.

here a screenshot (right side 4.0.3 left side 4.0.3a)




as u can see i lost like 700maxdmg
so those skills, that are based on weapon dmg got nerf'd twice.

str/ap is the same as prepatch, i lost some agi/crit/stam cause ingi enchants don't stack now.

as i already wrote in the other thread here.

warri normal whitehit melee dmg got nerf'd too, so skills like raging blow (weapon dmg based) are nerf'd twice

here a screen (left 4.0.3a right 4.0.3)

I have been leveling a Prot Paladin for some time and i am still learning currenlty lv 72.

I don use marcos on my main char Shadow Priest. But i have found that macros have helped greatly in tanking with my paladin.

I have found and modified the following macro's

i use two buttons q and e

button q

/cast [@mouseover] Avenger's Shield

then spam button e

#showtooltips
/startattack
/Click BT4Button40
/Click BT4Button38
/Click BT4Button43
/Click BT4Button42
/Click BT4Button41

BT4Button 40 has the following Macro
/castsequence reset=3 Hammer of the Righteous,Judgement,Hammer of the Righteous,Holy Wrath,Hammer of the Righteous,Shield of the Righteous,Hammer of the Righteous,Judgement,Hammer of the Righteous,Shield of the Righteous

BT4Button 38 is the same as button q

BT4Button43 is Consercration

BT4Button42 is Devine Protection

BT4Button41 is Devine Plea

Now this works very well yet as i can have my mouse cursor over other mobs while fighting and the AS will attack them and usually quite quickly as th GC proc happens regually.

Yet i have been reading that this is not the way to go. Some reason i have read

1. I should start with Devine Plea to get 3xHoPr and then use SotR, when should this fit in as i us AS to start fights.
2. i could quiet easily creat another version of macro e and replace HotR with CS.

What i have found with these marcos is it allows me all the time i need to keep an eye on the rest of the party regarding threat and any adds that might appear.

another extra point is have just gained avenging wraith, should i now add this as an extra button on the click button rotation?


What are your thoughts or am i completley wrong with what i have created.

Regards

Q: What's my maximum threat rotation?
A: Prioritize Shield Slam > Revenge > Victory Rush (with Impending Victory) > Devastate. Heroic Strike at 60+ rage.


^^

I've been studying prot on live with the 4.0.3a balance changes and after the threat reductions in SS and Devastate I've been trying out this priority order:


Shield Slam > Revenge > Victory Rush(with Impending Victory) > Shockwave > Concussion Blow > Rend(if not ticking) > thunderclap(for debuff/refresh rend) > Devastate. HS at 50+ rage.

Using this priority order my dps (and therefore threat since the individual threat modifiers were rolled into D-stance) seems to be at least 300+ higher on a training dummy(mostly 251/264 gear). Can anyone confirm/deny that my way is less efficient then the original SS > Rev > VR > Dev. HS at 60+

I'll try to parse some ACTUAL numbers later.

In my opinion titans grip will be better then single minded fury all together. With slower 2 handed weapons you will obviously hit slower but you will hit harder. Your always going to generate a set amount of rage as mentioned above. But with 1 handed weapons you will hit faster but not as hard. So you will generate rage faster but you will not be hitting as hard. But on the topic of haste, if you prioritize haste for faster rage generation you will have spikes of rage and not a steady flow of rage due to a huge lack of hit. Even tho hit will be hard to cap out in the first few tiers, we should still get as much of it as possible. Replacing hit for haste or any other stat will do more harm then good.

I've seen this mentioned a few times in the thread. It would be unwise to dogmatically accept GC's words as gospel, Lhivera (yes that frost mage evangelist) has made a career out of pointing out GC's contradictions.

That being said; a play style that would REQUIRE me to dps during an encounter to regenerate enough mana to be an effective healer, would make me sad.


Regarding mastery ...

I suspect that parsing logs and devising generalized constants for values like 'average HP of player during encounter before receiving heal' are not only going to vary based on encounter, but individual player ability (people still like to stand in big obvious flames) and raid makeup. I'd be more likely to trust my recount (or facsimile) if it could show me the value mastery added in a very instant and granular way. However from the sounds of it, being able to discern the value of mastery realtime from combat log data might prove to be a challenge.

Unfortunately reforging gear is not as easy as swapping out glyphs, (unless one decides to maintain multiple gear sets) or switching between an alternate restoration spec. If we see after farming raid logs, that mastery is extremely effective on certain encounters, and ineffective on others, I will opt for the more traditional crit/haste/int, when choosing a path. From some of the opinions of beta testers, it sounds like a 'good' healer will be one that has achieved a synergy with his build (talent/glyph/stat choices) and spell choice/timing, rather than maxing throughput stats and mindlessly spamming a max HPS rotation weather needed or not; thanks to the near binary nature of health bars in wotlk.

Naturally reserve the right to change my opinion on Dec 8th.

Keep up the good work. I guess the way sp00n is doing it helps to keep it clean round here.

@ lvl 85 considering 25% dodge (with talents and default gear)
How do i calculate what dodge either:
1 : dodgerating gives me
2 : Agility gives me

thanks in advance

getting abit confused about this talent . 3 points in this .

I thought it was if u get 2 crits ( doesnt have to be just after eachother) u have 100% to get a free pyro
so : crit , normal hit , normal hit, crit = free pyro

If so , is it bugged ? cause i dont get a free one , only when i have 2 crits in a row .

Thx in advance