The Division guide: how to make money

Save the world, yes - but also rake in those dolla dolla billz.

The Division guide: how to make money

The Division has two major currencies. Dark Zone Credits are earned and used in and around the Dark Zone, so you'll be focusing on that in endgame. For the bulk of your campaign experience, it's bog-standard Credits you need to worry about.

Credits are earned in a variety of ways as you play, and you'll want a lot of them - even the vendors who hang out in your Base of Operations will occasionally have something tasty on show.

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So how do you make your wallet fatter? Here are our preferred methods:

• Complete side-activities

When servers go live you can just bet most players will be rushing through the story missions, aiming to hit that end-game level cap and start rushing the Dark Zone. But as well as being a shared worlds RPG and tactical cover shooter, The Division is an Ubisoft game in the tradition of Assassin's Creed, Watch Dogs and Far Cry, and you know what that means.

On the off chance you somehow don't, what it means is this: the map will offer you a bunch of activities that aren't related to the critical story path. These activities will reward you with XP, loot and money, better equipping you for the main missions, so why wouldn't you do them?

For best results, regularly check maps and notice boards at hubs for details of new activities and events. You'll quickly learn which kinds of activities you enjoy and find the most lucrative.

• Fill ya boots, sell ya loot

This might seem obvious, but offloading your old gear at vendors is one way to obtain currency. The "mark as junk" feature makes this very easy to do in bulk.

Be smart about this: when you're heading out into the game world, empty out your backpack as much as possible. (If you're only going to do some low-level stuff you know you can steamroll, leave behind your back-up gear and stick to one build.) This will ensure you have plenty of room for loot. Don't walk away leaving trash loot on the street when you could convert it into dollars! Every bit counts.

Although you might not be levelling at as spanking a pace as in the betas, you'll still find yourself outgrowing your old gear on the reg. Think about what to keep, and what to chuck in your stash for later. You don't need half a dozen identical rifles with slightly different stats, but it might be worthwhile holding onto a slightly out-of-date shotgun if you don't have a close-quarters alternative.

• Don't spend money unnecessarily

Unless you've got a really obvious gap in your build - one piece of armour drastically under-levelled, for example - there's no need to buy gear while you're levelling up. On your way to the cap you'll find equipment turnover is rapid even when you're purely reliant on drops. Don't waste your ready now when that little whack of cash might be all you need to buy an end-game gun in a few days' time.

That said, make sure you're not being too cheap. Keep an eye one how much cash you're earning during missions and activities, and if it stacks up well against the cost of some tasty item you'll only use for a few levels, go for it. It's just a time investment, after all.

• Dark Zone runs

You knew it was coming. The Dark Zone is where all the best loot in the game is, and even the worst drops here will net you decent payments when you clear them out of your inventory at the nearest vendor.

Look for unique named NPCs and drop them for a very high chance of valuable gear, or go rogue, if you must. Try to fill up your stash before extracting, then cash in all your contaminated gear back at your Base of Operations.

The vendors in your base will bleed credits in exchange for this tasty stuff, even if it seems like rubbish in comparison to your equipped sets. Really good drops, of course, should be kept and equipped; we're only human.