PC Gamer staff members Harvey Randall, Joshua Wolens, and Fraser Brown recently dove into the beta for World of Warcraft: The War Within (previously referred to as WoW: Forever in the source material) with a singular goal: to amass as much gold as possible in two hours. Starting as level 1 Horde characters with a meager 20 silver each, the trio employed vastly different strategies, leading to a competition filled with roleplaying, slander, and unexpected financial success.
Harvey Randall, adopting the persona of "The Orc of Wisdom," leveraged his extensive roleplaying experience to interact with players. He set up campfires near a zeppelin tower, a strategic location that forces players to congregate while waiting for transport. By sharing custom-written snippets of wisdom and engaging in character, he aimed to earn gold through tips and voluntary donations. His interactions included a druid who offered meat, a generous player who gave him a gold piece, a witty elf, and an undead named Glenda who helped keep his fire going. He even experienced a comical "mugging" from an orc rogue who got so into the roleplay she fell off the tower. Randall described the community's response as delightful, with players actively participating in his roleplaying setup.
Joshua Wolens, self-proclaimed "Majestic Celebrity," approached the challenge with a strategy entirely reliant on his status as a games journalist, despite admitting little knowledge of World of Warcraft's mechanics. He focused on impressing other players with his supposed importance and slandering his opponents, hoping to gain their favor and elicit donations. This approach proved surprisingly effective, with his first interaction yielding silver pieces and well-wishes. However, Wolens struggled with basic game mechanics, such as navigating to The Undercity, and was unsure of the value of the currency he was accumulating. A notable incident involved a player named Zippie Skadoo who took offense to being called a "good man," leading to a tense in-game dialogue.
Fraser Brown, an experienced WoW player, admitted to having no concrete plan, a decision that led to what he described as a "worst two hours" of his month. His strategy devolved into skinning critters and making animal noises at one point. Brown’s recording of the two-hour period was filled with exclamations of frustration, rage, and existential dread. He recounted spending significant time on a low-reward quest, a decision he later regretted, lamenting his unfamiliarity with the unforgiving nature of the original WoW experience. He ultimately generated the least amount of gold, struggling with basic mob combat and the game's early-game challenges.
At the conclusion of the two-hour challenge, the combined earnings of the three participants, after subtracting their initial stipends, amounted to two gold, 49 silver, and 20 copper. Harvey "The Orc of Wisdom" Randall secured first place with 1 gold, 26 silver, and 6 copper. Joshua "Majestic Celebrity" Wolens followed with 1 gold, 13 silver, and 25 copper. Fraser Brown came in last, earning 9 silver and 89 copper.
The experiment highlighted the varied effectiveness of different approaches, from genuine roleplaying to leveraging perceived fame, and underscored the challenges of early-game economies in a new MMO environment. While the total earnings might seem modest, the experience provided valuable, and often hilarious, insights into player interaction and economic strategies in World of Warcraft.