New WoW item can only be accessed with an 18-year-old cosmetic, and MMO price-gougers are raking in the profits

gamesradar.com:

World of Warcraft has a new underground zone as part of Dragonflight's first big patch, Embers of Neltharion. There are plenty of new collectables, transmog items, and toys to find, though one requires an item nearly two decades old to access.

It's a cool throwback, though not one MMO fiends aren't trying to make a quick in-game buck from. The Onyxia Scale Cloak - an item required to snag the Blazing Shadowflame Cinder - is skyrocketing in value thanks to auction house shenanigans (thanks, Icy Veins (opens in new tab)).

Getting to the new zone, known as the Zaralek Cavern, is a breeze. Now that the update is live, head to the Dragon Isles when logging in to get the first campaign quest of Embers of Neltharion, and you can use three entrances to get in: the chasm between Valdrakken and Ohn'ahran Plains, one near Teerakai, and another around Azure Span, which isn't too far away from Three Falls Lookout.

Once you're in, you'll find a Blazing Shadowflame chest at the coordinates. The inferno blocking you from opening the chest is a bit of a giveaway, but you'll need an Onyxia Scale Cloak to guard against the fire to get your prize. 

Unfortunately, that item is from Vanilla WoW, and only a few players have kept their cloaks in the intervening 18 years. Everyone else is heading to the auction house to get the ingredients needed to forge a new one, so naturally, others in the WoW community have clocked on and hiked up the prices (opens in new tab) to match the interest. It's good news if you have a few scales of Onyxia knocking about, but not so much if you're looking to buy one as you fancy a cool new cosmetic.

As for the item itself, the Onyxia Scale Cloak was a must-have when it was released in 2005 as it prevents