Improving the Game Economically

[Roaran]

I don't know why you're stating the obvious. Of course improving the economy is going to improve the game.

You're misinterpreting me. The goal is not to improve the economy; mine is to improve the game. We could have a very advanced and dynamic economy with many different ascpetcs, yet we may end up destroying the game. Reconciling this point is important, as the economy is just one portion of the entire game.

You got goldsmithing to 50 (kinda funny how similar our classes are haha), are you happy with your jewellery being worth 10-20k a piece? Or would you rather the gems be rare so that you could sell rings for 200k each? Does a high end ring that costs about 10k to make being worth 15k sound like a healthy economy to you?

If the item your making costs only 10k to create, yet you are able to sell it for 15k; that is quite a substantial profit margin. The problem is your dealing in chump change. It is probably not worth your time to create these items, unless your trying to HQ them. I would just reiterate, prices are coming down quickly because you are competing with other crafters. They are either skilling up on rings and selling them for cheap just to get rid of them, or you are genuinely having other people craft them to make gil. If you want these items to cost more, then you would have to plant that cost in the creation of the item itself. You would need to pay more to create these items, and then you would have to pass this cost onto the buyer. In this process you still have no change in your profit margins as competition is likely the same as before. The only difference is you now have a higher costing item, and thus fewer potential buyers. You would only end up losing revenue, and you needlessly burden others who want this item.

As far as rare items go. They are rare because the developers deem them rare. You need not look further than supply and demand to determine why these items cost so much. The devs arbitrarily determine how many of said items they want in circulation over a certain period of time, and this determines the scarcity. Now, it goes without saying that when a player obtains one of these items, they will seek to maximize the amount of gil they can make. Whether its 900,000,000 gil or 4,000,000 gil it is irrelevant. Those who have the most gil will end up with these items regardless of any impositions we make into the economy.

Shampoo also made a very simple point that is correct; those that put in more time to the development of their character and their crafts/gathering will naturally acquire more gil. It is only natural that these players have an advantage when buying certain items.

But once again I would direct some attention to the title of this thread. Meddling with various mechanics of the economy have a great impact on the entire game. Making improvements in certain aspects may be detrimental to others. I would just advise others to keep in mind the economy must support the game, and there must be some basis in support of this whenever we decide to make changes to the economy.

[Xenor]

If the item your making costs only 10k to create, yet you are able to sell it for 15k; that is quite a substantial profit margin. The problem is your dealing in chump change. It is probably not worth your time to create these items, unless your trying to HQ them. I would just reiterate, prices are coming down quickly because you are competing with other crafters. They are either skilling up on rings and selling them for cheap just to get rid of them, or you are genuinely having other people craft them to make gil. If you want these items to cost more, then you would have to plant that cost in the creation of the item itself. You would need to pay more to create these items, and then you would have to pass this cost onto the buyer. In this process you still have no change in your profit margins as competition is likely the same as before. The only difference is you now have a higher costing item, and thus fewer potential buyers. You would only end up losing revenue, and you needlessly burden others who want this item.

You're missing the point. Nothing in this game should cost only 10k to create. There should not be 50 raw gems for every player on your server. The supply is too high and that's why the prices are so low. I reiterate, prices are coming down quickly because the supply of materials is way higher than demand. This is basic economics. When supply is higher than demand prices fall. When supply is way higher than demand prices hit rock bottom. That's exactly what is happening. To stop this you have to get the supply balanced with the demand. To do this you make items rarer. This is the basis of a stable economy.

If your thread isn't about improving the game's economy then don't title the thread as such.