Vana'diel on 10 Gil a Day

Courage. Cunning. Strength. Determination. Companions.

All of the above are indeed vital to adventurers, but we also need gear with which to fight monsters--and a mithkabob here and there never hurts when facing a powerful foe.

In the end, all adventurers inevitably come to this simple conclusion: Adventuring costs money.

According to veterans who have served as mentors to new adventurers, one of the more common questions they receive is "How can I get more money?" Surely, if there were a simple answer to that query, then every adventurer in Vana'diel would want to know, not just the new ones.

But let us step back for a moment. To amass a fortune, one cannot simply concentrate on accumulating money; one must also spend less.

So in this article, we asked adventurers from all nations about the money-saving techniques that they use.

The most common answer that we received from adventurers was "Make your own consumable items."

The term "consumable items" refers to things such as arrows, food, and medicine.

Adventurers who lacked the skills to make these items themselves said that they would procure the materials needed, and then ask friends with the appropriate skills to make the items for them.

The second most common answer was "Keep your travel expenses to a minimum."

Specifically, this entailed asking friends for teleports instead of paying for them, and traveling on foot instead of using chocobos and airships.

Even in situations where paying for transportation is unavoidable, some adventurers have discovered ways to lighten, or even nullify, their expenses.

"Whenever I use airships, I make sure to talk to an air travel agency employee. They sometimes ask you to deliver items that have been left behind by passengers. When you find these people and give them their lost items, they're so happy that they'll give you a reward."

The same adventurer said that he broke even on his airship fees--all thanks to the reward money. A technique used by many adventurers to control chocobo fees in Jeuno is to check the prices on each level, and select the cheapest one.

Of course, when time was of the essence, many adventurers said that they rented chocobos regardless of price. Perhaps it is precisely for these special situations, when they must be at certain places at certain times, that a lot of adventurers endeavor to be frugal on everyday occasions.

Below are several other money-saving techniques that were popular among adventurers.

"Before putting an item up for auction, check the selling price at the auction house in each major city, and sell it at the one with the highest price."

This method is not unlike the aforementioned Jeuno chocobo stable technique.

"Even if there is no use for them now, save any and all crystals that are acquired so they can be used for synthesis later."

Any one of us can begin doing this today, provided we have the space in our Mog Houses.

"Do not sell seeds. Grow them."

Selling items at the auction house incurs a surcharge. By growing seeds yourself, not only can you avoid this surcharge, but you may also receive a multitude of items for free. Adventurers who regularly use the auction house would do well to calculate their output of funds as well as their intake.

"Items acquired in battle should never be discarded. If you must discard something to make space in your pack, then you should begin with items you cannot sell at stores, or items with the lowest selling price."

Adventurers gave several examples of these "expendable" items: two-leaf (not four) mandragora buds, bird feathers, insect wings, copper ore, and rock salt.

But before you discard items such as these, remember that one person's trash may be another's treasure, and vice versa.

For example, in Giddeus, one can often hear voices shouting, "Please give me all your unwanted Yagudo bead necklaces!" This is a very efficient method in that not only do these adventurers save time collecting the items themselves--they also prevent these items from going to waste.

Such were the techniques and methods used by adventurers to save money.

In addition to asking about their money-saving techniques, we also asked adventurers how satisfied they were with their daily lives under such conditions. The overall response was rather surprising.

Despite using some sort of money-saving technique on a daily basis, many of the adventurers were very satisfied with their standard of living, even going as far as to say they were probably better off than most. Could it not be said, then, that the frugal habits they practice every day have given them the prosperity they now enjoy?

A little effort every day can go a long way in supporting one's adventuring exploits, and can eventually lead to great rewards. If you can believe this methodology, then perhaps scrimping and saving can actually be enjoyable.