Is Buying Gold a Violation of World of Warcraft's Terms of Use?

It has long been understood that Blizzard is opposed to companies who offer World of Warcraft power leveling services and sell World of Warcraft gold. That antipathy and the reasons underlying it were crystallized yesterday when Blizzard posted an article on the Negative Impacts of Buying Gold on the official World of Warcraft website. The question remains, however, are buying gold or using a power leveling service violations of World of Warcraft's Terms of Use?

Let me start by saying that I have never purchased gold or used a power leveling service. I actually enjoy leveling and playing the auction house, so I have never felt the need. It also likely does not help that I am outstandingly cheap and hold on to my money like you likely hold on to that "first epic" which has been sitting in your bank since you were a lowbie. I know players who have done both with good and bad experiences being reported. This discussion, however, is not about the ethics, merits, or safety of buying gold/power leveling, merely whether those actions appear to violate World of Warcraft's Terms of Use, last updated July 29, 2009, on its face.

Section 2(B) of the Terms of Use prohibits "exploiting the game... for any commercial purpose." This includes, but is not limited to gathering in game resources or providing in game services in exchange for payment outside the game. The World of Warcraft End User License Agreement contains an identical provision. This language expressly bars sale of in game currency and in game services, such as power leveling, but does not bar purchase. No other provision in either document even references these kinds of out of game transactions.

Though it does not specifically mention commercial transactions, the Code of Conduct contained in the Terms of Use may also, arguably, implicate gold and power level service purchasers. Section 9(C)(iii) of the agreement prohibits acts "Blizzard considers contrary to the 'essence' of the game." The recent article from Blizzard on Negative Impacts of Buying Gold as well the company's overt animus towards these services may demonstrate that, according to Blizzard, the act of supporting these rogue vendors is contrary to the game's "essence." The company has not, however, officially declared that position even though yesterday's article would have been the perfect opportunity to do so. It can then honestly be said that gold buying and power level service purchases do not expressly violate World of Warcraft's Terms of Use or End User License Agreement, but may theoretically run afoul of the agreements at Blizzard's discretion.

That, however, is not the end of the discussion. There is a lovely provision in the Terms of Use which states: "Blizzard may suspend, terminate, modify, or delete accounts at any time for any reason or for no reason, with or without notice to you." The End User License contains a similar section. This means that even absent a violation of the specific prohibitions contained in the document, you could still lose your World of Warcraft account if Blizzard so chose. As the document itself indicates, most suspensions and terminations are the result of Terms of Use or End User License violations and that seems to be Blizzard's practice, but such restrictions are not required under the language of the agreement.

In conclusion, purchasing gold or a power leveling service is not an overt contravention of World of Warcraft's Terms of Use, where as selling gold or offering a power leveling service certainly is. Despite this, Blizzard has a great deal of discretion in whether or not your character remains in Azeroth and the company certainly does not appreciate players using these vendors. Ultimately, the decision on whether or not to use these services is not one to be made lightly and the best thing you can do is make sure you are adequately informed before you commit one way or the other.

Making Gold from Level 1

These days, it is somewhat rare to find a genuinely "new" character. Most of the exceptionally low level toons you see running around Ironforge or Orgrimmar fall into one of three categories: bank alts, twinks in progress, or alts in training. Behind each of these lowbies you will generally find a high powered benefactor bankrolling his or her extravogent lifestyle of BoE Greens and ridiculously well developed crafting professions. In this world of virtual sugar-daddies, how is a truly solo lowbie to survive?

First and foremost, if you want to have any semblance of a bankroll during you first 20 levels, take Hebalism as one of your professions and sell everything you gather. Though the WotLK gods may have cursed you with bloated Auction House prices, they have also blessed you with the introduction of the Inscription profession. Inscriptionists Mill stacks of five herbs to generate the materials needed for their craft. Unlike Jewel Crafters, Inscriptionists will not stumble across needed materials in the game world and must Mill to advance their professions. This means that a player who want to adopt the new profession will need tons and tons of low level herbs and will be willing to pay through the teeth for them. The other gathering professions simply will not offer any where near the same bang for your buck as Hebalism currently does.

Once you have made a bit of cash, resist the urge to by that level 8 green weapon and invest in bags instead. Bag space saves time and money in a number of ways. First and foremost, you will not need to visit vendors as often to clear up space. Second, you will be able to leave nothing behind, assuring that every last piece of vendor trash you come across can be converted to precious coin. Lastly, your questing will be quicker and more efficient as looted quest items will no longer mandate inefficient quest turn in detours. When you decide to buy bags, check the Auction House first. There is no shortage of bags in Azeroth, so it is safe to expect a decent selection of options at reasonable prices. Do not drain yourself completely, but you can be confident that your investment in bags will return dividends in the long run.

The last key to finding financial success as a true lowbie is to not adopt the spending habits of the alts and twinks which surround you. It will be tempting to buy yourself a new set of greens every five levels, but resist the urge. You will grow out of those pieces so fast it is simply not worth it. Through questing and instance runs, you will have a wardrobe more than sufficient to get you by. The immediate increases in performance you would see from twinking yourself out will quickly be overshadowed when you find yourself unable to afford your first mount or, god forbid, short on cash to training new skills. Remember, nobody likes a beggar.