Economy Inflation Explained
Quick answer: VvW economy inflates ~2.5% per quarter. Drivers: net gold inflow > outflow, new player influx (more gold earned), patch-day legendary resets. Dev team countermeasures: quarterly source/sink rate adjustments, CPI monitoring, bot detection. Player implications: prices drift up; lock in legendary purchases when planned.
Inflation rate
CPI (Crafting Price Index — avg tier-3 weapon price) rises ~2.5%/quarter. Stable across servers.
Drivers
Net gold inflow exceeds outflow. New player population adds gold faster than it's burned. Patch days flood AH with legendary loot.
Dev countermeasures
Quarterly review of source/sink rates. CPI dashboards. Bot detection (every 12h).
Player implications
Don't hoard gold long-term — lose ~10% real value annually. Lock in planned legendary purchases when ready. AH arbitrage less effective during high-inflation quarters.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where to see CPI?
/api/public/stats endpoint.
Can players cause inflation?
Aggregate behavior, but devs adjust quarterly to neutralize.