Would a raffle system be that hard?

[Jojoya]

Oh that would definitely be an improvement, though I do really enjoy how FF has us in wards, I like seeing my neighbours around, you know?

How often do you actually see your neighbors in your ward?

It's a rarity for me even though I go to my house a few times a day and I'll even craft in my yard when the weather is Clear/Fair. I've never seen the player who owns the house across from me even though I know they do go there because the yard is changed occasionally. Outside of friends coming to visit me at my house, the only time I've seen someone else in the ward is when I've gone to the marketboard and met someone who was also using it. It's not like my house is in a remote corner. If there was no Aethernet in the ward, there's a sizeable portion of the ward that would pass by my house to get to the beach or merchant stalls. Because the Aethernet exists, they can use that to get where they're going instead.

Wards do feel like ghost towns not because they aren't used but because there's no reason to travel through them.

You got a point there. They'd probably have to do something at raffle entry to sift out the bots from the actual players from the bots without the constant clicking for hours for an invisible timer.

Why would a bot buy a house? They don't have a use for one. If a bot operator is looking for a place a crafting bot can work unobserved, an apartment is a much better choice because they're instantly available and a lot cheaper.

Those automated placard campers aren't bots. They're normal players using simple repeating scripts (probably on a gaming keyboard) to do the clicking for them because they have no problems with cheating to get what they want.

Using the third party tool is still wrong but we really need to stop calling everything a bot when it's not.

[ItMe]

How often do you actually see your neighbors in your ward?

It's a rarity for me even though I go to my house a few times a day and I'll even craft in my yard when the weather is Clear/Fair. I've never seen the player who owns the house across from me even though I know they do go there because the yard is changed occasionally. Outside of friends coming to visit me at my house, the only time I've seen someone else in the ward is when I've gone to the marketboard and met someone who was also using it. It's not like my house is in a remote corner. If there was no Aethernet in the ward, there's a sizeable portion of the ward that would pass by my house to get to the beach or merchant stalls. Because the Aethernet exists, they can use that to get where they're going instead.

Wards do feel like ghost towns not because they aren't used but because there's no reason to travel through them.

Yeah... whenever I zip around a ward I only really see people at the market boards.
For all their talk of wanting neighborhoods and the community feeling they sure aren't doing much to provide on that front, huh...

Why would a bot buy a house?

... don't they do this to try and flip them?

Those automated placard campers aren't bots.
[...]
Using the third party tool is still wrong but we really need to stop calling everything a bot when it's not.

100%
This is a big pet peeve of mine.

[Themarvin]

You got a point there. They'd probably have to do something at raffle entry to sift out the bots from the actual players from the bots without the constant clicking for hours for an invisible timer. As for what it should be, I don't know, cause the only thing that comes to mind is a random sequence of button presses displayed on a UI. But that sounds like it could be hard to program cause some are on PS, and others on PC, and they could have custom keybinds. And I also highly doubt that it would be a lasting defence against bots since their creators are cleaver computer engineers.

And I don't think relocation would have to crash anything if they also enter the raffle just like everyone else. Sure, their will definitely be complaints on the loss of efficiancy for relocation, but now everyone has a fair chance of getting the plot once SE finds better ways to prevent RMT and bots.

I know you posted on several of these threads, but I my tired brain can't remember if you voiced your ideas for a better house buying system before or not. Do you have any other ideas?

The house shortage is more an illusion, than what it seem, if you look at wards, then often you see most of them is ghost towns, some further requirements could be set in place, to be able to keep a house, in form of a monthly upkeep, aka paying rent... large 1million, medium 750K and small 250K per month, and that would go for both player and FC houses, not having enough gil in your inventory, and you will get a 72 hour eviction notice, in which you can of course pay the rent, including an additional fee as for being late to, just a suggestion.

[Barwara]

The house shortage is more an illusion, than what it seem, if you look at wards, then often you see most of them is ghost towns, some further requirements could be set in place, to be able to keep a house, in form of a monthly upkeep, aka paying rent... large 1million, medium 750K and small 250K per month, and that would go for both player and FC houses, not having enough gil in your inventory, and you will get a 72 hour eviction notice, in which you can of course pay the rent, including an additional fee as for being late to, just a suggestion.

I don't think this would change anything when it comes to inactive houses. 250k-1mil is probably pocket change for players with a fortune (and I bet most of the people owning/decorating houses are quite wealthy considering how expansive it is to buy, and decorate, said house). Just as like for the demolition timer, it would be easy for them to just drop that amount every month even if they aren't super active, and it would probably be easy for them to procure that money if they really needed to.

I don't think there is a perfect solution for ward houses. They will always be in shortage because of server capacity, always in demand, always hard to snatch. They should be subject to a demolition timer for sure because otherwise no plot will ever free itself and you'll never have a chance to get one. But if there were instanced houses, at least you'd be able to get one and not worry about a demolition timer, and still have the choice of owning a house in a ward that you'd have to 'upkeep'. It's the best compromise I see.

[Themarvin]

I don't think this would change anything when it comes to inactive houses. 250k-1mil is probably pocket change for players with a fortune (and I bet most of the people owning/decorating houses are quite wealthy considering how expansive it is to buy, and decorate, said house). Just as like for the demolition timer, it would be easy for them to just drop that amount every month even if they aren't super active, and it would probably be easy for them to procure that money if they really needed to.

You will be surprised about the amount of players who has 1-5millions or less only.

[Barwara]

You will be surprised about the amount of players who has 1-5millions or less only.

I mean, I'm one of them ROFL.

But I also don't really like the idea of being forced to produce money in game. I don't play to earn gill, and I wouldn't want to do so just to keep a house. During a certain month I might not want to focus on making money at all, and do other things instead. Does that make me unworthy of owning a house compared to someone who has been playing for 10 years and probs amassed a fortune by now and can pay rent in advance for the next 3 years? :P

[ItMe]

You will be surprised about the amount of players who has 1-5millions or less only.

I am too lol.
I kinda wish FF14's census could track player wealth statistics.

[Themarvin]

I mean, I'm one of them ROFL.

But I also don't really like the idea of being forced to produce money in game. I don't play to earn gill, and I wouldn't want to do so just to keep a house. During a certain month I might not want to focus on making money at all, and do other things instead. Does that make me unworthy of owning a house compared to someone who has been playing for 10 years and probs amassed a fortune by now and can pay rent in advance for the next 3 years? :P

But it is a system that would work though, other games has upkeeps like that, and I think it should require something, to have something of worth like this, should also come with a price, also for a cottage 250K per month is not bad, for a FC house, paying 250K per month for a cottage is not much.... medium and large of course more costly.

I think it would be a sound system, all those who got grandfathered, would sooner or less be flushed out out as well, so they go from owning a ward, to a half ward, then to maybe just a few houses that ward.

I myself live in large house, I got a couple of tenants though, and I would be more than willing to pay 1million per month for having a house that size.

[Vahlnir]

But it is a system that would work though

But it would accomplish nothing at the end of the day, making it a pointless restriction. People put in the time to get a house, though some have been luckier than others. The auto demolition timer is enough of a price since it requires a near monthly sub. Instead of trying to come up with absolutely terrible band aid fixes they should be coming up with real solutions. And we should be trying to find such solutions ourselves to put out there as feedback and not putting out garbage like raffles and rent. Neither of those solve the underlying problems regarding housing, and they certainly don't help otherwise.

[Themarvin]

But it would accomplish nothing at the end of the day, making it a pointless restriction. People put in the time to get a house, though some have been luckier than others. The auto demolition timer is enough of a price since it requires a near monthly sub. Instead of trying to come up with absolutely terrible band aid fixes they should be coming up with real solutions. And we should be trying to find such solutions ourselves to put out there as feedback and not putting out garbage like raffles and rent. Neither of those solve the underlying problems regarding housing, and they certainly don't help otherwise.

Make it a gil sink and a good one, it also flushes out the black market/RMT FC/House sellers on reddit.