Retainers and FC's Not Useful?

[FoxyAreku]

So what exactly... is the point of this feature? Cluttering the lawn with NPCs that serve no purpose other than... keeping you from walking the 30 feet to the closest market board? I mean development time was spent on this and I am just trying to understand why someone greenlit this.

Retainers don't act as a market board, from my understanding. They just sell what they are currently selling.
I see it as a fun feature to have a shop of random goodies that is constantly changing on your lawn.

[Shadex]

Retainers don't act as a market board, from my understanding. They just sell what they are currently selling.
I see it as a fun feature to have a shop of random goodies that is constantly changing on your lawn.

From the patch notes:

Once a retainer is placed on estate grounds, items that they currently have listed for sale on the market can be purchased by anyone who speaks with them. The retainer's sales history (up to 20 entries) can also be viewed by other players.

Sounds to me like they are nothing more than another way to interface with the MB...

[Ulathskullsplitter]

So is this at least going to be tax free if you buy from a yard sale instead of the actual market board? Would make it somewhat useful.

Also now that I'm thinking of taxes how is it going to work if its not tax free? Say on the market board your retainer is listed as selling in Limsa but it's at your house in Gridania. You buy from it on the lawn of the house. Do you have to pay the extra amount because it is listed in limsa even though your standing right in front of it?

[Canadane]

I'd imagine they'd be tax free, yes. If you personally visited a retainer in 1.0's retainer halls you weren't charged tax on the purchase.

[Kaiser-Ace]

Wow, this feture is like the resurection of the 1.0 market wards. You had your retainer NPC stand around and actually sell the items market street style. And now that you can "Gear Up" you retainers that would let you show off your retainer's gear and style as well. With the way FC houses are set up you could even use the out door furnature to make a market stall for your retainers as well.

All this really is suppose to be is a cool feature to let you show off your retainer. Personally it's kinda annoying that I have a retainer that looks like a carbon copy of Lightning from FF13 right down to the Blazefire Saber and no one but me can see her. Think less about "What's this improving" and more about "This could be a cool way to display my retainers."

Something I'd love to be able to do is place minnions inside the house. Once I clear final coil and get the Wind-Up Louisoux minnion I'd be able to make a full "Circle of Knowing" round table if I could put all my minnions in one room.

[ladyJ]

yay another useless addition... not grant fcs extra fc chest slots... dont allocate fc specific retainers that sell items for the fc and put gil into the fc chest automatically... we have to use our personal retainers to sell items in the fc yard.... sooo that means no extra storage for the fc but now anyone who has access to your retainers now has acces to your retainers storage and gil?? hmmmm ...

[Catwho]

I think the main reason was to let people show off their retainers. Nothing to do with sales. I know some people who have iLvl 110 retainers since they got all their gear handmedowns. They are like, STUPID PROUD of their overdressed retainers, and would love for someone else to be able to see them.

Me, personally, all my retainers are dressed for business and too busy harvesting and mining to bother with showing off.

[AkiraTsurugi]

Can anyone please shed some light on how it seems to work? I know nothing is sure but is it:

Do the items retainers sell DO NOT appear on the market board if they are outside in the house? I was thinking this could prove useful to give access to the officers to gather funds for FC by making items FC members could buy at a cheaper price than MB to collect some funds. If they also appear on the market board it seems like a giant waste of resources. If the idea isn't that they DON'T sell on the market board can a dev please shed some light if an NPC like that could be made? Our idea is to make Xpots and stuff cheaper so that people in the FC can buy them instead of marketboard and still gather funds for airships and stuff.

[Shadex]

Ahh well. Huge kudos on an otherwise amazing patch. 98% amazing just this tiny 2% meh.

[LordLonghammer]

Is the point of this to make the housing districts look like there are actually people in them? Housing wards are always dead, maybe this is to create an illusion of more ppl playing?

Come to Ward 1 plot 10 of the mist

So what exactly... is the point of this feature? Cluttering the lawn with NPCs that serve no purpose other than... keeping you from walking the 30 feet to the closest market board? I mean development time was spent on this and I am just trying to understand why someone greenlit this.

http://imgur.com/sprsPxF

Yeah....