alchemy-specializations
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A first look at Mists of Pandaria professions: Alchemy
Every week, WoW Insider brings you Gold Capped, in which Fox Van Allen and Basil "Euripides" Berntsen aim to show you how to make money on the Auction House. Feed Fox's ego by emailing him, tweeting him at @foxvanallen, or sacrificing your first-born to him. One of the most common questions I get as WoW Insider's (other) resident Auction House guru is this: What professions are going to be the best in Mists of Pandaria? Arguably, there's no absolute right or wrong answer to the question -- after all, each profession is going to have its pros and cons. (I like to hedge my bets by giving different alts different professions to have a max level of each profession.) That said, one of my favorite professions for the early days of any expansion is alchemy. It's likely one of your favorites, too, and there's no mystery as to why -- transmutes. In the earlier days of Cataclysm, it wasn't rare to see Truegold sell for more than 1,000 gold apiece. That provided a small profit to any alchemist, but for those lucky enough to see bonus procs, a single transmute could turn a 4,000 gold profit or better. Not bad for about 20 seconds' worth of work. Of course, that was then; this is now. Will alchemy remain as stupidly profitable in the early days of Mists of Pandaria? Only one way to find out -- ladies and gentlemen, it's time to datamine! To the beta!
Ask a Beta Tester: It's all about the money
We have a lot of profession questions today, but also a few about Achievements, the Beast Mastery 51-point talent, and what happens when you push Death Knights off a cliff:Riley asks...How is the Shaman Hex ability working? Does the target still have control of movement and does the PvP trinket work against it?Hex is a the crowd-control spell for Shamans referenced by the devs at the class panel here, and it's been tinkered with a lot since we first heard about it. It was originally meant to be more of an emergency-only, short-duration CC. In its present form, Hex's duration has been increased to 30 seconds and it doesn't necessarily break on damage. However, in PvP the target can control where they go, the PvP trinket does work (you can also shapeshift out of it as a Druid), and it's considered a curse and can be dispelled by Mages, Druids, and restoration Shamans (who will have the ability do dispel curses with a 31-point talent Cleanse Spirit). Think of it as a somewhat odd combination of Counterspell, Fear, and Polymorph.
Insider Trader: Alchemy, the final stretch
Insider Trader is your inside line on making, selling, buying and using player-made products. While alchemy is certainly not the most flashy or popular profession out there, alchemists are an integral part of the game, and any guild worth its salt has at least one, preferably several, working to supply guildmates and fill the guild bank with stacks of consumables and transmuted items. This week's leveling guide will feature the usual cheapest route, and the most useful, to 375 for solos and casuals. For those of you who will be working for your guild (and hopefully are also being financed, or supported by herbalists), we'll show you how to reach 375 by making the most useful items. They might cost more, but your guild will be requiring them anyway, so you might as well get your skill points that way, rather than making stacks of items you won't be using.
