Shame on SE for horrid system. Idea for improvement!

So, I came back from a long break and thought I'd get a house before Shadowbringers dropped and a potential new housing area opens up. Instead, I have no house yet and came back to the literal worst design decision I've seen SE make since FFXIV 1.0. I want to know who came up with the idea of a hidden timer, especially one so long, and why they thought it was a good idea? I then think they should be fired. If it was a group effort, then I weep for SE in general.

I sat in front of a single plot yesterday for 17 hours. 17 HOURS! I really wish I was exaggerating. As a 34 year old person with a life and a job, for me to do something for 17 hours straight is an absolute rarity. I haven't played a single game for more than 8 hours straight in over 10 years. And yet, I went above and beyond that yesterday for a CHANCE to get a housing plot. And before you ask, I did not get that plot. I got so absolutely tired that I could no longer keep my head up and had to call it quits. When I woke up my plot was taken with a house already on it.

I'm beyond dejected. I get the reasoning behind the change and wanting to prevent RMT is a noble cause. However, the new system actually favors RMT more than the regular player like me. How's that you ask? Simple, RMT can still sell a FC with a house to those who want one and they have the manpower to sit in front of a sign far longer than you or I could. I once dealt with an RMT linkshell in FFXI and talked regularly with one of their members. When they were done for the day, another guy just took his place on that same character. So they can definitely sit at a plot for whatever invisible timer that is in place. And if the timer is ridiculous like 24 hours they can do that far easier than you or I can and in far greater numbers.

But fear not! I am not here to simply complain as I have seen in a hundred other threads. I offer an idea that I think everyone could get behind. One that vastly improves the odds of regular players getting a house while minimizing the chance of RMT getting it. Read the next post below!

Who here has played a guessing game? For example, pick a number between 1 and 10. My idea expands on that but with a silent auction twist. Imagine, if you will, that a 5th class plot goes up for sale. Instead of a hidden timer, the plot has a 4 hour timer (seems a reasonable enough time frame) and anyone can walk up during that point and participate in the bidding. The system picks a random price between the minimum plot price and the maximum. So for a 5th class plot, that would be between 1,488,000 and 3,000,000 gil. For that four hour window, people can come up to the plot and bid a random price between the minimum and maximum. They can only place one bid that no one else can see and when they do it takes the Gil out of their wallet for the duration of the auction. Then at the end of the 4 hour period, the winner is the one who got closest to the random price picked by the system.

Not only do I feel that system would be more fair, it eliminates the need for anyone to sit at a placard and click for hours which can be a detriment to ones health and sanity. Everyone has a chance to get it at that point. They can place their bid and go do other stuff. When the timer is done, a winner is announced and those who didn't win have their bids refunded and they can try again elsewhere. And SE can either make it so you can only have one bid at a time or multiple on different placards. But the most important thing I think is that when you bid you forfeit that amount of Gil for the duration. It severely lessens potential abuse from RMT groups.

So, let me know what you guys think! I'd rather not kill myself trying to get a housing plot and I'm sure a lot of you would agree with that, lol.

Invisible timer sucks. The simple fact that it can take over a day is insane. Lower the timer.

Why not make it if a plot is opened just have it go up for sale randomly within the week, just leave a ghost house or something to fool people into thinking it's a owned home, that way people aren't going to camp it.

I'm fine with the RNG element but it taking over a day is just way to long.

From my understanding the time in which you can claim land can take up to 24 hours. Here's the downside, within those 24 hours someone already owning a house can relocate to it immediately. It was fine at the start when they added Shirogane to stop new players camping and claiming land right away and reselling it at inflated prices, but it's terribly unfair for any new person wanting their first home because it prioritizes already existing home owners who are just looking for better land to relocate to and then you'll have to enquire to where they were originally situated and have to start all over again with the waiting game at a risk someone else decides to relocate there.