Diablo 3 is a game of wealth in gold, gear, gems, runestones and even real money. The fundamentals of the game will also be based on scarcity of equipment and the power of your character compared to others. As in World of Warcraft, as expansions and content patches are released, existing gear will be devalued and new gear will be available… at a cost.

This drive for new gear will create a huge incentive for farmers to farm and beggers to pay up. Players will find unique ways to collect more things of value than anyone else. These things will likely include legendary gear, crafting materials, gems, gold and runestones.

One way players can increase their rate of return is to stack magic find gear. I’ve talked about the details of a potential magic find set, stacking gems, enhancements and specific types of gear to increase your chance of finding magic items. Magic items will be salvaged and sold on the auction house as crafting materials.

It’s very likely that even the most difficult content, defeating Diablo on Inferno difficulty, will be ‘farmed’ by players will the ability to do it. Players will sweep through as fast as possible collecting everything that drops in hopes of making real money per hour. The potential, though, is being one of the first players to do it shortly after the game release.

The newest and greatest Diablo 3 players will have more than bragging rights shortly after the release of the game. They will have exclusive access to the greatest gear, items, enhancements, crafts and gems available in the game. In the moment that the first players defeault Diablo on Inferno mode they will hold a monopoly on awesome.

How long will this competitive advantage last? How long will it takes the majority of players to beat the game and bring prices down of the best items available? Only time will tell, but until then the most serious and dedicated players will be make the big bucks.

Important: Many of the strategies and tips I share here were originally inspired by the people at the Diablo 3 Gold Secrets Forum. If you're serious about making the big bucks in Diablo 3, or just being the best players, you need to signup ASAP.