Sneak Peek: Guardian Cub Tradable Pet
A new pet is coming to a Blizzard Store near you and ... you can trade it and sell it at the auction house!
Originally Posted by Blizzard (Blue Tracker / Official Forums)
Coming soon to a Pet Store near you: the new and titanically cute Guardian Cub companion. You’ve soared across Azeroth on the majestic Winged Guardian. Soon, you'll be able to purchase a pint-sized Guardian of the Titans sidekick to accompany you on your adventures.


Stunning good looks and adorable, supersized eyes aren’t all this new pet has going for it. The Guardian Cub is also the Pet Store's first tradable pet, meaning it can be swapped between characters in-game or given as a gift to guildmates, friends, family, or that special someone -- no adoption papers necessary. Due to his finicky nature, each Guardian Cub will only give its allegiance to one owner, meaning it’s a one-time-use pet that permanently binds to a single character. Be sure to choose a master wisely.

Look for the Guardian Cub to arrive in the Blizzard Store in the weeks ahead -- in the meantime, we've prepped a mini-FAQ to explain how this flying friend will differ from other Pet Store companions.

Q: How does the Guardian Cub pet work? How is it different from other Pet Store pets?

Unlike the other Pet Store companions, the Guardian Cub is a tradable, one-time-use pet that permanently binds to a single character upon use. When you purchase the Guardian Cub from the online store, the character you designate will receive a bind-on-use item to carry in his or her inventory. You can either use the item yourself to permanently add the pet to your character's collection (consuming the item in the process), or -- after a brief initial cooldown period -- you can trade the item to another player so he or she can add it to one of their character's collections. Note that once the pet has been added to a character's Companions list, it can no longer be traded, so make sure you're giving the cub a happy home.


Q: Will I be able to carry more than one Guardian Cub at a time?

While a character can only have one Guardian Cub in his or her Companions list, you can have as many in your inventory as you like. Please note that Guardian Cub items do not stack, so each one will take up a bag or bank slot.


Q: How much will the Guardian Cub cost in the Pet Store?

The Guardian Cub will be priced the same as the other Pet Store pets ($10 USD). All sales of the Guardian Cub are final -- no refunds will be given once a purchase is made.


Q: Why did you decide to make the Guardian Cub tradable?

Since the introduction of the Pet Store, many players have been asking for ways to get the companions we offer there without having to spend real-world cash. By making the Guardian Cub tradable (much like the BoE mounts from the World of Warcraft Trading Card Game), players interested in the new pet will have fun, alternative in-game ways to get one. In addition to trading the pet, players can give the Guardian Cub as a gift to another character for a special occasion; guild leaders can use them to reward members for a job well done; and so on. We also hope this change will help reduce the number of incidents of scamming via trading for invalid pet codes.


Q: Could I put the Guardian Cub up on the auction house to try to make some gold if I wanted to?

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.


Q: Are you changing the other available Pet Store pets (e.g. Lil' Ragnaros, the Pandaren Monk) to work this way?

No, the other available Pet Store pets will continue to work as they always have.


Q: What about future Pet Store pets?

It's too early to say how we'll handle future Pet Store pets. We made this change in response to feedback from players looking for alternate ways to get the Pet Store pets, and we're always looking into other opportunities for improvement. We're interested in hearing what players think of the Guardian Cub when it launches, and we hope you'll have fun with this new flying friend.
This article was originally published in forum thread: Sneak Peek: Guardian Cub Tradable Pet started by Boubouille View original post
Comments 729 Comments
  1. djdidi's Avatar
    If you can't beat the gold sellers you might as well join them. Except blizzards way is legal.
  1. Worgoblin's Avatar
    Hey Blizz, can we just skip the middle man and let me buy gold directly from you?
  1. Arishia's Avatar
    !0 dollars for a one shot pet is a total rip off considering all the other pets go to your entire account.
  1. Immamoonkin's Avatar
    I'm gonna go crawl in a corner and cry. I was hoping this would never happen.
  1. ZeroWashu's Avatar
    No, not only no, but HELL NO. This just the new lead in to charging people per character for every vanity pet. To soften the blow or perhaps redirect the anger they pretty it all up and market it as a gift giving experience. Now, if it optionally could used on all characters of the account that purchased it then I could see a $10 pet I can give away. I understand that what your getting is the ability to gift people without their having your real identity but this item just costs too much for one time use.
  1. paloalto's Avatar
    Everybody sing with me,

    "Buy to wiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiin, buy to wiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiin. IF you need your BIS pre-heroic weapon, then just buy to wiiiiiiiiiiin."
  1. mmoced78b691e6's Avatar
    cant say Im that surprised ..
  1. Jeina's Avatar
    This is not gold selling.This won't spell the end of WoW.The world will not end.Go back to your normal lives.
  1. blackone's Avatar
    You guys are being as stupid as always. This is not more of less "OMGOMG OFFICIAL BLIZZARD GOLDSELLING" than the TCG items, which have always been tradable. So your QQ is about 5 years late.
  1. Triggered Fridgekin's Avatar
    I think the other pets were pretty cool because they were usually with notable characters. This just seems a little excessive since you just had people shelve out $25 to buy the mount.

    At the very least, they could have provided it to those who already have the mount for free and added the price tag for those who do not. Charging everyone for what is essentially a scaled down version with stretched out eyes falls further in the realm of greed which Blizzard is starting to get known for...

    Also, I would love to see where the revenue these things bring in is being allocated. I can understand things such as the Cenarion Hatching for the tsunami relief in Japan as well as the Pandaren monk for charity but what about the others? Does the money go straight in to their pockets or does it actually go towards acquiring more resources since that seems to be the biggest excuse they come up with when asked to introduce something fresh in to the game.

    If it's for the former and they are doing it to buy a bigger Yacht or pool, screw that; if it's for the latter or they are double dipping in to it with other Blizzard titles, fantastic! Just don't say so with no proof.

    I won't buy it and I won't hate on those who do buy it but to those who do, understand that you are enabling them to think about more ways to nickle and dime the customers and one never knows just how far this will take us in this game or any future Blizzard titles.

    Edit: Why do all my posts come out as a wall of text and I have to edit after?
  1. creepygnome's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by dotSeed View Post
    Isn't $10 a little excessive for a single use pet? The others apply to all characters, include future ones, right?
    This is something that struck me too. For a single use pet, this is a little much. I guess it is their way to stop people from buying 10 just to make a bunch of gold. Since they are assuming that quite a few people will use it for that purpose. It sucks for those who just want the pet, but I think the pet itself is secondary to the ability to trade if for gold. At least that is what I am getting from their little Q&A.
  1. mynxie33's Avatar
    What the... The head is gigantic. If anything, it should have been a mini celestial steed. That guardian mount is extremely tacky and ugly! Couldn't they have made a new pet model? Or better yet, put it in the game instead of milking impulsive customers
  1. eucatastrophe's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by dotSeed View Post
    Isn't $10 a little excessive for a single use pet? The others apply to all characters, include future ones, right?
    My thought as well.
    Honestly don't know what to make of Blizzard anymore.. *sigh*
  1. Thetruth1400's Avatar
    To me, Blizzard just put the final nail in their coffin. What they're doing, weather they admit it or not, is testing out a real life money = in game advantage system. In addition to that, it's basically them selling gold. There is no way they can change the fact that they've been completely against selling money, until now. Now though, since they can make money off of it, they are allowing it, even if it is a round-a-bout way they're doing so.

    For me, I can safely say, WoW is dead.


    Note since people will make comments; This is my opinion. If you disagree, that's fine, but don't try to come in here and tell me I'm wrong because I don't agree with you.

    Quote Originally Posted by det View Post
    "Blizzzard never listens to the fans"...."Since the introduction of the Pet Store, many players have been asking for ways to get the companions we offer there without having to spend real-world cash. - Hmmm seems they listen, but you guys might not like it.
    I think the problem is that people asked for a way to get this in game with gold or some other method, not as a way for Blizzard to sell gold. I know it may be arguing semantics, but having an item obtainable via in game means, really isn't the same as selling an item for money that in turn can then be obtained by others via in game means.
  1. Ivirus's Avatar
    Oh god, it's face... other that that it's cute? I see Blizzard is adopting the marketplace feature from Korean MMOs. Now we can play with bloated inflation on a subscription game soon too!
  1. Bassch's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Andelormon View Post
    Many other games have the means to buy ingame currency for real money, but when WoW moves that direction people flip a bitch. Why? These other games STILL have issues with gold sellers just like WoW does. This won't make them go away, but will make things easier for those with a disposable income. I don't really see the issue...unless your upset that you are a hard core professions farmer... /gasp
    The other MMOs that usually do that are F2P. WoW isn't.
  1. Heltoray's Avatar
    wow... here activision goes milking some more money... this time indirectly selling ingame gold without causing direct inflation. And here I hoped the game wasn't completely lost yet. Now I see...
  1. mmoca79f018270's Avatar
    Personally I'm not a fan of the face, it fails for me in trying to be cute
  1. Expectations's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by paloalto View Post
    Everybody sing with me,

    "Buy to wiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiin, buy to wiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiin. IF you need your BIS pre-heroic weapon, then just buy to wiiiiiiiiiiin."
    You could buy them already? Whats you're point?
  1. durenas's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Twintop View Post
    Originally Posted by Blizzard Entertainment
    Q: Could I put the Guardian Cub up on the auction house to try to make some gold if I wanted to? 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.
    Emphasis mine. I think Blizzard has realized that they've lost the gold selling war and are trying to capitalize on it instead of fighting it. This is hardly as shocking an announcement as it once would have been thanks to the D3 AH. Programs like this have worked out fairly well for games like Eve...maybe someday you'll be able to get game time from gold (a la Eve)?
    I think it's more along the lines of: they were trying to fight the gold selling black market without offering a viable alternative. Without some kind of viable alternative it is really REALLY difficult to stifle that kind of demand. I knew when I saw the diablo 3 AH that it was only a matter of time before we started to see the cracks in the wall in world of warcraft.

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