Blizzard on WoW Forever gold buyers: 'we've been too lenient', and permanent bans are on the table

Anyone who played in 2005 remembers the gold spam: whispers, corpses spelling out web addresses, and sellers standing in Ironforge. Blizzard says WoW Forever will treat that market differently.

What Blizzard said

In a developer Q&A, senior game designer Josh Greenfield answered questions about GDKP-style loot auctions and real-money trading (RMT). His answer was unusually blunt:

• Blizzard will “very aggressively” punish gold buyers in Forever;
• in the past, he admitted, the team was probably too lenient, and some of its actions were easy to get around;
• speaking as someone with a 22-year-old account, he said losing an account permanently is not worth it, and strongly advised players not to try.

He did not spell out the penalty, but the message is clear: expect account-level action, not a short suspension. PC Gamer points out that players have asked for exactly this for years. Whether it holds at launch, when the real money is at stake, remains to be seen. Nobody buys gold in a beta that gets wiped.

Why the economy matters more in Forever

Forever has a fixed level cap that is never raised. New content is added across all levels instead of replacing old gear. In that design, inflation is dangerous: if gold loses its value, crafted items and whole professions lose their point. Greenfield said the economy is a core part of the experience, and that Blizzard has tuning knobs to adjust supply and demand if prices get out of hand.

This fits other decisions already announced for Forever: GDKP is not supported, and combat addons are limited. The team is clearly trying to stop gold becoming the only way to gear up.

The part that is not solved

Bans deal with buyers. They do not deal with exploits. In trade-heavy games, one duplication bug or farming exploit that runs for a few hours can wreck prices for weeks. Blizzard’s tuning tools will be tested the first time something like that slips through after launch.

How to make gold without the risk

The safe way is still the slow way, but it is less slow than you think:

• our gold guide covers the best farming and crafting routes found in the beta so far;
• professions in Forever have new recipes worth planning around;
• the Merchant’s Favor guide shows what the Waylaid Crates pay.

If someone offers you gold for cash in game, report them. From what Greenfield said, buying is not worth your account.