Author:Wotsmaleus - Heavens Tear
Often times people are upset about the cost of things, claiming they never have enough coin to get the things they REALLY want So I thought I'd share some basics that a lot of people seem to take for granted.
First, all references to money defaults to "coin". Gold is an entirely different currency system and this essay is not about Gold. For those who do not know, there are several different currencies in PW. The in-game currency is called "coin" and is commonly dropped by monsters and acquired though the buying and selling of objects in the game. Zen is a currency that is used to buy Gold and Silver. It is used to buy Boutique items.
Grab everything
Anyway the first step to making money in PW is that when you start grab everything. You might think an item is worthless, but in actuality, everything a monster drops has a price. Often times you will fine objects called DQ (Dragon Quest) items. These are used for series of quests later in the game and for the expansion of your bank. These items sell for quite a bit. You can either sell them in your own shop or sell them directly to NPC vendors.
Don't Buy stuff you can get on your own
This leads us to the second step. when you need materials and Dragon Quest drops, unless the price is close to what a merchant would pay for it, don't bother buying it. The greed of your fellow player loves to feed upon your purse. Find reasonable PC shops or farm materials on your own. General rule: Don't Buy stuff you can get on your own.
Teleport only if you REALLY need to
The teleport master offers a hand service of sending you to a point you have visited previously. While really nice, and cheap in the beginning, eventually it becomes expensive depending on your location. Since the teleport system works on a hub system, you might have to hop from one spot to another in order to get to the final destination. Elves can save the most money by flying (79 meters up nothing will get you). Other races may have to hoof it. Teleport only if you REALLY need to.
Kill at your own pace
Even though walking can be tedious, most monsters you will be able to kill are landbound. Kill when you can and grab the drops. This of course needs to be combined with another piece of advice, kill at your own pace. running out of MP or HP results in death. Most monsters aren't going anywhere. Kill a few and then meditate. This helps reduce the cost you incur with potions. Only if the monsters are 20 or so levels weaker than you, should you slaughter mercilessly.
Pay attention to drops
Often times, certain monsters drop certain objects with frequency. And sometimes you might want to find a less known monster to fight to avoid KSing (kill stealing). In essence, if you find a place with a nice drop rate and very few people around, farm the monsters until you feel content. But remember there are other players.
Crafting is your friend
While some people believe that crafting is for "suckahs," it's one of the most reliable ways to make coin. You should probably have at least two crafting professions. The first being Apothecary, the second being anything of your choosing. Apothecary is a must as it allows you to do two things. First, you can reduce your spending on potions by crafting your own remedies such as chaos Powder, Vibrating Orbs, and Jade Powder. Second. you can craft charms and remedies you won't personally use, and then sell them for much more than the materials use would sell for. Third, the charms you can make with the Apothecary craft skill can improve the amount of damage you deal or lessen the blows of your enemies. This makes killing things faster and lessens the impact of damage upon your wearables. And a second crafting skill is a good choice, not only because you can sell what you produce, but you can decompose your creations, creating chistones and Mirage Celestones. These can be sold, used to create charms (with the Apothecary skill) or for those who are lv30+ they can be used to recharge your method of flight's accelerate ability, thus making travel much faster.
Invest in Gems
It might seem like a ripoff, but invest in Gems. I prefer to invest heavily in Amber as it improves Evasion. If you have socketted wearables, this is a definite MUST HAVE. If enemies can't hit you, then they can't damage you as often. This means you consume less potions and your wearables will suffer less damage, making it so you don't have to go in for repairs as often.
Don't buy gems form you fellow player
when you have the ability to do the Crazy Stone quest, don't buy gems form you fellow player. Level one gems can easily be acquired by a NPC Merchant and at less of a cost. Eventually the Crazy Stone quest will ask that you deliver higher level stones. Again, don't buy from your fellow player. First, go to the NPC Merchant and buy three of each lv1 gem required for the Crazy Stone quest. Then take these gems to the jemcraftsman and select combine. Hit the Element tab and then combine the gems you have.
So while skills and abilities do cost money, if you are thrifty and smart with what you have and what you can do, you can pretty much make all the coin you need for what your immediate needs are. And if you need more money, start putting coins into the bank and continue the process over and over again. It might be hard to make you first million, but it's certainly not impossible.
