How do I set up a Retainer/Bazaar in a Ward?

[JusticeReborn]

Hi all. I apologize if this is a stupid question, but I poked around the forum here first and I didn't see any kind of Retainer FAQ or guide.

I've recently returned after being away for a long period of time. Previously, I had a retainer set up in a Ward somewhere with stuff to sell. My inventory on both her and my actual character was getting full and I learned I could hire a second retainer. I did so and unloaded some stuff onto her as well, even pricing them. I also pulled money I had sitting on my first retainer as well.

A couple of days later, I checked my second retainer and she had no money. I thought, "Well, I guess I gave her stuff at the Bell in the Adventurer's Guild, set up pricing for it, but I never did specify where she should sell it." So I went from Ward to Ward in Uldah, but all were full and none would allow me to summon my retainer.

I headed back to the Bell at the Adventurer's Guild and summoned my second retainer. I took all the stuff off of her that I wanted to actually sell. I then summoned my first retainer and put the items in her bazaar instead, since she had originally been assigned to a Ward, way back when.

Again, a couple of days later and nothing has sold. I had even checked the going price on each of the items before setting up the Bazaar. Now I'm wondering if my first retainer also is not set up to sell goods somewhere, although she had originally been.

So next thing I do is head to the Wards and do an Item Search for something I know my retainer is selling. Her name does NOT pop up, however.

So here's my question, I guess: How do I set up a retainer to sell stuff in their bazaar / in the Market Wards? I tried going to various Wards and summoning my retainer, but each was full. Am I doing it incorrectly? If so, what is the proper way to do so? And as for my first retainer, that was set up in some Ward... did I pull her OUT of being able to sell when I summoned her at the Bell and adjusted her inventory/bazaar? Because the items she is selling no longer appears via Item Search at the Wards entrance...
Secondly, is there a way to find out which Ward my retainer is in? I ask this because, prior to doing the Item Search for something I knew was in my retainer's bazaar, I wondered this question. Maybe the answer IS just to do an Item Search but, again, maybe there's also another means of which I do not know.

Thanks in advance for any tips.

[Conradus]

When you summon a retainer with the bell, you pull her out of the ward. You get a message warning you you're doing this, too. She doesn't go back to the ward, either. A retainer dismissed from the bell goes into idle, regardless of where she was originally. Limbo, basically. If you want to deal with your retainer without yanking her out of the ward, you have to go to where she is in the ward and deal with her there. If you display your retainers, it shows a sack on a red background if your retainer is on duty in a ward. If it's idle, it'll show a figure with crossed arms on a green background. You can see this by choosing the "Show Retainers" entry in the main menu. If your retainer is on duty in a ward, it'll list what ward she's in.

Not being able to deploy a retainer because the ward is full is indeed a pain. If a booth is available, you could rent one for 500 gil. That lasts 24 hours. You can renew at any time for another 500 gil but you get no credit for unused time; it just sets the clock back to 24 hours. If the clock expires, the booth is vacated and your retainer goes back into idle limbo. On the fun side, you can set the booth decorations and curtain color.

[JusticeReborn]

Wow. Thanks for the info. So I basically need to just go through Wards repeatedly until I hope I am able to summon, possibly at the same time someone else is summoning theirs at Bell. O.O

[Mychael]

Wow. Thanks for the info. So I basically need to just go through Wards repeatedly until I hope I am able to summon, possibly at the same time someone else is summoning theirs at Bell. O.O

Just a tip... if you're planning to be on right after the maintenance:

* Retainers will not be repositioned automatically following this maintenance, so please be sure to manually summon your retainers if they were placed in the markets.

So if you hurry, the wards will be empty, though I suspect a lot of people will be summoning ASAP.

[Conradus]

Wow. Thanks for the info. So I basically need to just go through Wards repeatedly until I hope I am able to summon, possibly at the same time someone else is summoning theirs at Bell. O.O

Ah, you're on Selbina. That explains a lot. Here on Trabia, getting your retainer set out isn't nearly as hard. Although that may change with the upcoming merge into Hyperion.

[Mychael]

Ah, you're on Selbina. That explains a lot. Here on Trabia, getting your retainer set out isn't nearly as hard. Although that may change with the upcoming merge into Hyperion.

Yeah... they're a pain over here. When some of the newer people ask, we basically tell them they should just go through all of the wards once every hour, trying to summon. Or tell them to rent a stall until they have better luck. =/ Basically since pay-to-play, I've had mine in Battlecraft Row, but I rented 2 stalls/day for ~a week before I happened to be in the wards at the right time. Here's to 2.0 and cross-city markets. T _ T

[Conradus]

The "500 gil just resets the clock to 24 hours" is a real pain. Either you have to renew *twice* a day (which can be difficult to schedule) or eventually you'll miss and the booth will expire. I understand that they don't want people renewing far into the future to monopolize the booth, but it would be nice if you could get credit up to, say 48 hours; then you could really renew only once a day.