Blizzard has implemented a new initiative to ward off World of Warcraft gold sellers by introducing a new pet called the Guardian Cub. The pet which is available for purchase at $10, is a bind on item that isn’t bound to your account. This means, purchasing the new pet will allow you to sell it in the auction house. By doing this you can effectively buy gold from Blizzard themselves, how much these pets will go for will likely be dictated by the current prices that WoW gold farmers have set. That is of course if the World of Warcraft has a functioning market that abides by the laws of economics.
Blizzard had this to say about the Guardian Cub:
“While our goal is to offer players alternative ways to add a Pet Store pet to their collection, we’re ok with it if some players choose to use the Guardian Cub as a safe and secure way to try to acquire a little extra in-game gold without turning to third-party gold-selling services. However, please keep in mind that there’s never any guarantee that someone will purchase what you put up for sale in the auction house, or how much they’ll pay for it. Also, it’s important to note that we take a firm stance against buying gold from outside sources because in most cases, the gold these companies offer has been stolen from compromised accounts. (You can read more about our stance here.) While some players might be able to acquire some extra gold by putting the Guardian Cub in the auction house, that’s preferable to players contributing to the gold-selling ‘black market’ and account theft.”
Blizzard says to look for the Guardian Cub to arrive in the Blizzard Store in the weeks ahead.
