Market Wards fixes: A definitive list and petition

[Roaran]

Congratulations on designing an even more efficient Auction House.

Well I don't mind if you don't understand what an Auction House is ^_^, I just hope others realize the standard AH system is terrible, and there is a better way to do it.

Considering SE already stated they wanted to increase the significance of retainers, and allow them to buy/sell on their own. I have a feeling this will more or less lead to a reference system eventually. I just hope they take it a step further and remove the need to move through the wards and place/buy from retainers.

[Kirith]

Well I don't mind if you don't understand what an Auction House is ^_^

This kind of trolling always gets me to bite...

By its own definition an auction house is a place to perform auctions. An auction is the act of selling something to the highest bidder. FFXI's auction house sells always to the first lowest bidder. It thus isn't a real auction house.

"What an auction house is" has no relation to this topic. The sale system you're describing is the same as FFXI, without some of the artificial time wasting mechanics the developers put in DELIBERATELY as part of the game design that keeps players wasting time in a subscription MMORPG.

Of course they can make so you can press one button and have all your items on sale on the whole server instantly, with the profit from sales coming directly into your pockets and unsold items being sold over and over again, following market price variation automatically until they're finally sold. It just isn't how MMORPG design works. Efficiency isn't the purpose and there are also physical limitations to count in.

[Roaran]

In the system I was describing, you have multiple individuals coalescing together to from a "Market". They buy/sell and trade from one another. It's similar to the stock market. There's a single hub for everyone to trade with, and it's all done by individuals. You wouldn't call the stock market an Auction House.

FFXI is *more* like an AH, and WoW is an Auction House.

Of course they can make so you can press one button and have all your items on sale on the whole server instantly, with the profit from sales coming directly into your pockets and unsold items being sold over and over again, following market price variation automatically until they're finally sold. It just isn't how MMORPG design works. Efficiency isn't the purpose and there are also physical limitations to count in.

This is a startling statement. What else are market mechanisms for? Without them we could still buy and sell. You could even argue it was more immersive. The only problem is, it would be a hassle. The SOLE purpose of an auction house or market system is to allow the players to buy/sell more effeciently.

There are physical limitations, specifically the servers. But, SE has already decided. They want the kind of automatic buying and selling retainers would allow, and they've already stated they would be able to do this once the servers have been altered. Which, honestly, is a great thing for us players.

[Mahayana]

Roaran you have a good idea in your topic so I'm linking it on my op

[weeble]

dunno if it's been said or added but i'd love a way to gear and dress my retainers, in ffxi i only did events on my mules so i can dress them up to go afk at nite looking cool in summer gears or christmas cloths. it would be cool at some point to add a way to fully dress them with untradable gears or seasonal event gear.

other then that only thing i think needs truely fixing is just the being able to see hq items too.

[Arcell]

Signed.

As much as I have little problem with the current market ward system, there are problems that will arise with a larger playerbase that even I can't ignore. Retainers can serve other functions than just standing around in the wards all day.

[Verecund]

I'm personally in favor of abolishing the whole idea of having city wards (or at least radically redefining their function) in favor of a more sandbox-type system.

For instance, I think that if city wards were open to the top successful merchants/crafters (determined monthly and gives a small perk), it could help better define crafters as an actual class by giving them competitive goals and systems to work in.

A major benefit of redefining wards in this way is that it helps spread out the population a bit more, in addition to actually accomplishing the original goals of the Retainer merchant system in a more natural way.

[Mahayana]

As much as I have little problem with the current market ward system, there are problems that will arise with a larger playerbase that even I can't ignore. Retainers can serve other functions than just standing around in the wards all day.

Yeah, imagine a sea of retainers when this game gets a large community. Even with the star marking the seller it would be damn near impossible to find the seller. Your retainer could still serve as a bank by accessing him inside the adventurers guild but I would really rather have a booth for that as well. I can't imagine hiring a guy who you hire for your use only that just holds your stuff in his house.

[Enma]

Signed.

I don't like to have my storeroom ( I hope it's right ) mixed with my "seller". I'd like to have a building similar to an AH from where you can buy without moving through different wards, running from a side to the other, waiting for spawing retainers, ecc.

Give us a Market Wards "Store" and a Mog House ( or something similar )!

[DoctorMog]

Signed,

This game needs to be FF11 clone asap or people are gonna quit.