Middle-earth: Shadow of War: How to earn Mirian and make money fast

Cash is a particularly important commodity for staying on top form, so knowing how to earn Middle-earth: Shadow of War Mirian and make money fast will stand you in good stead. Unlike Talion's previous adventure through Mordor, you'll need to accrue money quick to keep ahead this time, and the in-game currency of Mirian is used for all sorts of purposes. If you need to level up your gear, it'll cost you a little Mirian, and if you want to make your armies better at laying or defending from sieges, you're going to have to cough up plenty more. Needless to say, you'll need a good flow of Mirian if you want to stay ahead of the game.

There are plenty of ways to make money fast in Shadow of War, but the most important thing you can do is be thrifty. Orcs and gear drops level with Talion as you play the game, so spending money on chests early on is a waste. Instead, hoard your loot and wait until Act IV before you start getting crazy. You can acquire the Captains and gear you need to keep moving forward without having to spend a dime and, when the time comes, you can maximize the benefits that earning Middle-earth: Shadow of War Mirian can give you. Here's five of the most effective ways to make money in the game.

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1. Complete quests

Almost every quest in the game will reward you with a chunk of Mirian. This will be your first source of cash, and luckily there's a way to get even more money per mission. When on a quest, you'll see your current mission objective in the upper left corner of the screen. Often, there will be a secondary objective under it that if completed will reward you with bonuses after the mission. Make sure you complete this objective before you complete your main task if you want to potentially make more money when you complete the quest.

2. Hunt down Treasure Orcs

There are Orcs that randomly spawn which carry treasures throughout the lands of Mordor. Sometimes they're lone wolfs, but you'll often find them travelling with a group. They'll be marked with a black and white icon above their heads, and when you kill them they'll drop an item. Sometimes they drop gems, but for the most part they're carrying Mirian. The most common amount you'll get from them is 50 Mirian, but every once in awhile they'll drop a hefty sum of 1,000 Mirian. It's worth going out of your way each time you see them for the chance to fill your coffers. 

3. Sell your gear

Gear comes in four varieties: normal, rare, epic, and legendary. You shouldn't sell legendary items, since they're the only ones you can continue to level up throughout the game, but you can get rid of the rest in return for a quick cash boost. Starting out, you'll only make 100-200 Mirian each time you sell a piece of gear, but when you start picking up level 30 or 40 gear you can get around 500+ a pop.

Don't hoard your swords, daggers, bows, axes, armor, cloaks, and rings, because you're always going to get better rare and epic gear. Plus, your real objective is to collect and level legendary sets because they're much more powerful than the other tiers of items.

4. Destroy Orcs for gear to sell

You can get Orcs through the market in War Chests, which you can deploy anywhere in Mordor. However, the Orcs you get through chests will never exceed your current level, so if you don't send them out immediately you'll find yourself with a bunch of outclassed Orcs setting in your inventory. 

When Orcs die, or are destroyed by you through the market menu, they'll drop a piece of gear that is the same tier of rarity and level as they are. Don't hoard Orcs if you don't plan on doing something with them. Destroy them and sell the gear they drop for an easy wad of money.

5. Send your Orcs to fight in the pits

Each area in Mordor has its own Fighting Pits, in which Orcs battle to the death for supremacy. To get a quick cash infusion, send an Orc to win in the Maggot level pit fight. Once you've won a Maggot fight you can have an Orc compete at the Warrior level. Winning the Warrior fight in each area will net you a one-time lump sum ranging anywhere from 1,000 to 5,000 Mirian, depending on the location. 

Freelance writer

Jason Faulkner is a former freelance writer and currently a senior editor at Game Revolution. Jason has an encyclopedic knowledge of video games and consumer technology, and has put it to good use throughout his time as a journalist and editor in the industry.