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. Palisis's Avatar
    Makes me chuckle reading so many posts on how Blizz should run their company.
  1. Jiggles's Avatar
    It's not that this pet will be the most efficient way to "buy" gold in WoW, but it will probably be the easiest. A lot of people have been unwilling to "buy" gold in WoW before because it carried substantial risks (e.g. bad codes, TCG packs with nothing good in them), violated the ToS (e.g. Chinese gold farmers), or both. This pet carries none of that risk, and is much more direct, to boot. I expect the market will probably be flooded initially, but the price will stabilize. I can't imagine anyone in their right mind posting one for 200 gold.
  1. The Glitch's Avatar
    I don't personally mind, the fact it's going to be able to be sold in game. Let's face it, they will flood the AH's and be reduced to small amounts of gold very fast. People will realise it's not worth spending the real money for the small amount of gold they get back. (some will still do it ofc)

    And I like the fact that my friends that don't own a credit card can now get a pet from the store without alot of hassle.

    However. I am pretty annoyed that it is a one time use, unlike all the other pet store items that have been BoA.

    I truly feel they should have 2 options when purchasing this pet.

    1. Buying this pet to trade in game (one time only use)

    2. Buying this pet to use on own account (BoA can be sent to all characters)

    I love my pets, I have a real obsession for them, and I will get this regardless, I know.. I have no willpower. But i will not be buying 30+ of them to get on every toon I own. I'll buy my main, one. And then seriously shake my head at Blizzard for being meanie pops!
  1. Palisis's Avatar
    TCG has had pets being sold for years. They are vastly more prevalent. This has been in the game for a long time now. Congratulations for reading MMO-Champ and getting a clue.
  1. The Glitch's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Palisis View Post
    TCG has had pets being sold for years. They are vastly more prevalent. This has been in the game for a long time now. Congratulations for reading MMO-Champ and getting a clue.
    TCG you get an actual physical item, (the card) they are also extremely rare especially the mount's. And if you buy from EBAY cost Waaaaay more than 10 quid from the pet Store.

    These pet store pets, cost 10 quid, and are non physical, and are unlimited.

    Quite different imo.
  1. Pumps's Avatar
    Great, I'm so going to buy a pet for 100000 gold... oh wait, no. I'm not.
  1. Ronyx's Avatar
    "Q: Could I put the Guardian Cub up on the auction house to try to make some gold if I wanted to?" pretty much sums up what every single person is thinking when they see this change, including Blizzard. You can't honestly sit there and say that this isn't a huge factor. To me this looks like Blizzard is testing the waters.
  1. Alinnia's Avatar
    For an one time use, $10 is a bit overpriced compared to the other BOA pets. Should had been like $5 or something. Nonetheless, I actually do like this new change which essentially gives players two options to purchase a Pet Store companion - either with rl money or with gold. With this move pet collectors aren't forced to buy a pet with rl money if they have a lot of gold and would rather spend gold to add a pet to their collection. Although tcg pets allowed this to a degree, it isn't a widely used option as the pets are bop. This means you have to purchase from another player an in-game code, which has a high chance of being fake and thus players shied away from trying to purchase tcg pets with gold due to the high risk of being scammed. Thus this new pet will allow players to purchase it with gold without risk of being scammed as the pet is boe and not bop.
  1. Gio's Avatar
    Epic mess but it will cost like 100 gold after a week after all that's the ugliest pet i've ever seen
  1. Rude Hero's Avatar
    Every time something like this happens, people complain and the response is "this isn't a big deal and the slippery slope is a fallacy." Then, later... the next time we actually do progress farther down the slippery slope, it's "this was already in the game, look back at that stuff, and nobody complained back then."
  1. sizzlinsauce's Avatar
    oh jesus. they just made gold buying legal...
  1. iravemosh's Avatar
    yall act like these pets are going to sell for more than 500-1000 gold .... lol
  1. Dariela's Avatar
    As a confirmed pet store junkie, I just threw up in my mouth a little. Slippery Slope argumemts aside, I've just hit my end.I'm officially off the bandwagon. A new game can't get here fast enough.
  1. Jiggles's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by iravemosh View Post
    yall act like these pets are going to sell for more than 500-1000 gold .... lol
    Who in their right mind would sell them for less than that? Only idiots would put up a $10 pet for 500 or less gold. I'm not saying WoW doesn't have idiots, but that is a special brand of dumb.
  1. DoctorDoomkin's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Attsey View Post
    Selling gold regardless of how its gathered is simply not allowed. Blizzard will argue they are selling the pet but they know it will be sold and used to get in game gold.
    And that amount of gold depends on how much the person is willing to pay for. If everyone and their dog turns the AH into a Nyan Cat Adoption center, then you've wasted your cash.

    You are not buying gold. You are buying a pet. The amount of gold you will get will be inversely related to their IQ level.

    ---------- Post added 2011-10-10 at 09:41 PM ----------

    Quote Originally Posted by Phishy714 View Post
    Since when did Blizzard become a gold-selling site?INB4next thing you know, you will be receiving tells from GM's in that special window that pops up about buying WoW-Gold real cheap, Buy and use immediately, cheapest prices everywhere!Except you won't be able to report them and you won't be able to close the window. Way to fail more bllizzard.
    They are not selling gold. They're selling a pet. All they did is put up a new item, and the gold from Player A goes to Player B.

    You are thinking: Player B instantly gains 100k gold and buys everything in the AH.

    It is no different than someone buying something from the AH and putting it up for a higher amount in hopes someone would buy it. Chances are, they're not going to.
  1. PromiscuousPenguin's Avatar
    Well I personally don't mind this in the sense that it will have no effect whatsoever on why and how I enjoy this game. For all those saying its one step away from selling gear it really isn't, if somehow in the future blizzard goes against years of denying it and offers gear gore gold you will get your classic "I told you so. In the mean time the only thing that it proves is that they have listened to those who wished to have access to these pets without spending real money, that might not be you but then again try to remember the millions and that it really not just about well you.
  1. DoctorDoomkin's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Attsey View Post
    There are plenty of very good posts on this forum that explain the problem, I suggest you read them.
    And they amount to nothing.

    You are not going to profit off of this. If you honestly believe you will be making gold off of this stupid pet forevor, you're sadly mistaken.

    If this was a system that allows you to buy weapons, hunter/warlock pets, and armor and sell it on the AH, then it would be a valid argument. But again, the people who are most likely to buy are pet collectors. It's very minuscule compared to the audience that is interested in Armor, and Weapons, and mats to make said armor and weapons, something that is actually useful in the game compared to some poptart-less Nyan cat.

    There's hardly a market for them. And is dependable on the person's ability to make $10 compared to whatever the price you think you can make.
  1. Mediansoft's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by durenas View Post
    The value of real money is a built-in deflation insulator(if that makes sense). It will stabilize to the point where nobody will plunk down 10 dollars just to sell for a measly 1k. I would expect it to vary between 10k-20k-ish. Nobody's obliged to sell for less than they think it's worth. If the price is too low, people will just hang onto it until the price rises again.
    10k seems the "honest" price. You get about 10k of gold for 10Euro. (prices by igxe). If anyone even thinks to sell this for prices like 20k and up ... well people would have to be real silly to get it for that much (as in, they could just spend the 10 buck then and come off cheaper)
  1. Buu's Avatar
    I think is a lame movement of Blizzard, so I will not buy it. But I don't care about those that will buy. Every person is entitled to their opinions, and have to deal with their own decisions. So why bother with others?

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