Idea: Put a CAP on GTN

[Vhaegrant]

I don't think you need to put a cap on the GTN.

 

There may be a valid argument for introducing more ways of obtaining purple crafting materials. One of the original intentions behind the Contraband Slot Machine, unfortunately the drop rates were poorly thought through (1:1:1 ratio for the green, blue and purple jawa mat tokens ).

 

Purple items should be a luxury item. It should be seen as something you aspire to. Not something that drops as frequently as greens and blues. As such they should carry a price premium.

 

If you are a solo player with no affiliation to a friendly guild you are putting yourself at a severe disadvantage when it comes to advancing in end game. I think all the crafters in the guild I am in will craft just for mats (they take the critical successes as the pay off).

 

Also, crafting 192 mods (the highest craftable mod as far as I am aware) still requires you to procure a rare material, a random drop from level 60 FP bosses. This material should form a key part of the cost framework not the standard purples.

[krisknife]

you made an absolute declaration about "fair prices".

 

A fair price is a personal decision, not an absolute one.

 

my exact quote, not hard to find, was that if PEOPLE had fair prices....geez......*facepalm*

[TheGreatFrosty]

If items that are necessary to be competitive were not so abusively expensive such as a 37 Hilt for over a million credits, the system and economy within SWTOR would work as intended. This is the main reason the Jawa Junk on the controversial slot machine was good. It allowed people to craft their own items and not rely on spending half their game play making credits to buy those items. I love this game but, I doubt it was the intention of the devs to have people spend so much time on farming credits and less time on playing content. The crafters (small part of overall community) were awarded the nerf for the Slot Machine. Now reward the rest of the community and CAP the GTN.

 

Who are you people? Where did you come from?

 

You sound like the UK's benefits generation.

 

You cannot have something for nothing. Not happy with the prices? Go out and get them yourselves. How moronically egotistical are you that you believe you're justified in valuating an entire raid group's time?

 

The materials for the 37 hilts don't grow on trees. They have to be earned via raiding. Bioware needs to step in and do something to silence this train of thought - these mindless children making noise because they can't have what everybody else has without doing anything for it.

[GuruVII]

So it is ok in your opinion that a person should have to spend 9mil+ on Armor, 9+mil on mods, 9+mil on Enhancements, a couple mil each on Hilts or Barrels just to be competitive? So 30mil plus on one character. That is just a crafter wanting to get rich and another reason to return the slot machines to normal function.

Well it is either spend credits or spend time doing OPS, PVP or (for slightly lower tier) HM FPs.

Top tier equipment has always been in the domain of people who actually spend time playing the game and the idea that you are not competitive without it is silly. By using planetary commendations you can easily acquire the gear needed to start doing SM OPS and HM FPs.

Not to mention slot machines have done little to change the prices of top tier gear, since they require mats one acquires though OPS and HM FPs.

Edited January 22, 2015 by GuruVII

[Pagy]

my exact quote, not hard to find, was that if PEOPLE had fair prices....geez......*facepalm*

what gives you the right to tell us what's a fair price or not.

[krisknife]

Who are you people? Where did you come from?

 

You sound like the UK's benefits generation.

 

You cannot have something for nothing. Not happy with the prices? Go out and get them yourselves. How moronically egotistical are you that you believe you're justified in valuating an entire raid group's time?

 

The materials for the 37 hilts don't grow on trees. They have to be earned via raiding. Bioware needs to step in and do something to silence this train of thought - these mindless children making noise because they can't have what everybody else has without doing anything for it.

valid point, but calling other posters/players names is just going to detract from it and get you some nice infractions on your account for posting.

[OddballEasyEight]

Actually, many of the crafters (myself included) loved the Jawa Junk being awarded by the slot machine as it allowed us to craft more stuff. True crafters weren't crying over the slot machine at all, they loved it and are bummed it's now rendered pretty much useless.

 

The ones that were not happy were the ones who farmed mats, not to craft, but to sell on the GTN.

 

Yup.

 

It's not the crafters that were whining, it's the farmers.

 

AKA. The luddites.

[TheGreatFrosty]

valid point, but calling other posters/players names is just going to detract from it and get you some nice infractions on your account for posting.

 

The monitoring of belligerent and abusive posts has gone out of the window in the last few days.

 

Since I am tired of this communal polarisation between those that have to those that have not, with crafters and GTN users being continually demonised, I see no reason why not to respond in kind.

 

Simply put, I feel aggressive language is necessary to make a fool understand he's a fool. Or it just makes me feel better, I don't know.

[branmakmuffin]

The people in favor of price caps and such seem to have the attitude that it is mandatory for characters to have the best craftable gear and that charigng (IMO) outrageous prices is akin to charging $50 for a case of water after a hurricane.

 

I think the prices are too high, too. So my solution is what a rational person does when confronted with a too-high price for a luxury item: I don't buy it.

 

If the items in question are selling for a mil (or more) then that is by definition a fair price, given that, as virtual goods in a computer game, they are luxury items

Edited January 22, 2015 by branmakmuffin

[Rehtiz]

Yup.

 

It's not the crafters that were whining, it's the farmers.

 

AKA. The luddites.

 

Proud farmer here.

 

If the price continues to rise I'll start farming mats for sale again...

[Delta_V]

So it is ok in your opinion that a person should have to spend 9mil+ on Armor, 9+mil on mods, 9+mil on Enhancements, a couple mil each on Hilts or Barrels just to be competitive? So 30mil plus on one character. That is just a crafter wanting to get rich and another reason to return the slot machines to normal function.

 

Uh... what? If you're not raiding, you have precisely zero need for 192-rated gear. 186-rated gear is more than enough for all solo content, and is easily obtained via basic comms. You only *need* 192s if you are doing operations, and if you are doing operations, you should be getting tokens and comms for most of your gear. The only reason to buy a few pieces off the GTN is to optimize your stats and/or acquire a few pieces that you haven't been able to win the roll for.

 

If the only way you can get 192-rated gear is from the GTN, well, you clearly aren't doing anything that actually requires 192-rated gear. And if you think the prices are too high, start crafting yourself. There is absolutely nothing stopping you from getting started. But I guarantee, once you realize just how much effort goes into crafting 192-rated gear (getting the item in the first place, getting lucky on the 10% RE chance for end-game items, then obtaining the rare mats required to craft it) you won't think it is so expensive anymore.

[Alec_Fortescue]

Find someone who will not sell / craft the hilt for millions of credits. Problem solved. LOL at op. This stuff is OPTIONAL and I have no idea why people decide to spend so much credits on it. You can easily clear all the story modes with unoptimized basic gear and hard can be done with semi-optimized massassi.... Edited January 22, 2015 by Alec_Fortescue

[DawnAskham]

If items that are necessary to be competitive were not so abusively expensive such as a 37 Hilt for over a million credits, the system and economy within SWTOR would work as intended. This is the main reason the Jawa Junk on the controversial slot machine was good. It allowed people to craft their own items and not rely on spending half their game play making credits to buy those items. I love this game but, I doubt it was the intention of the devs to have people spend so much time on farming credits and less time on playing content. The crafters (small part of overall community) were awarded the nerf for the Slot Machine. Now reward the rest of the community and CAP the GTN.

 

Want a 192 MH, kill Revan in SM like I do each week and win the MH token.

 

Alternatively, kill Revan or Cortani in SM 16 (or HM) and win the exotic purple mat.

 

Option for those that cannot or will not do the former, pay someone who obtained the exotic purple mat.

 

Want any other crafted item outside the 192 stuff, pick and level crew skills, or pay someone who did.

 

Nothing crafted in this game is gated such that a player cannot obtain it, though most require time and effort.

 

If you cannot or will not bother to put in the time and effort, then that is on you - no one else.

Edited January 22, 2015 by DawnAskham

[Pagy]

If the only way you can get 192-rated gear is from the GTN, well, you clearly aren't doing anything that actually requires 192-rated gear. And if you think the prices are too high, start crafting yourself. There is absolutely nothing stopping you from getting started. But I guarantee, once you realize just how much effort goes into crafting 192-rated gear (getting the item in the first place, getting lucky on the 10% RE chance for end-game items, then obtaining the rare mats required to craft it) you won't think it is so expensive anymore.

/thread

[leihn]

So it is ok in your opinion that a person should have to spend 9mil+ on Armor, 9+mil on mods, 9+mil on Enhancements, a couple mil each on Hilts or Barrels just to be competitive? So 30mil plus on one character. That is just a crafter wanting to get rich and another reason to return the slot machines to normal function.

 

I just want to clarify that the slot machine doesn't make 192 rated craftables easier to come by, no one is gated by the jawa junk materials when crafting 192s, they're gated by the Exonium / Matter Transubstantiator which are only found at the end of HM FPs and 16M SM or 8M HM ops bosses respectively.

 

That's pretty much the reason for the cost of those 37 mod items, you have to run the ops to get those materials (unless you exploited Coratanni on a lot of different alts). To be honest, for most servers, the majority of those crafted items are from people who exploited Coratanni to get more mats than intended.

 

Having said that, I don't think capping GTN solves the problem you're facing and it creates an entirely different slew of other problems.

[Drockter]

If items that are necessary to be competitive were not so abusively expensive such as a 37 Hilt for over a million credits, the system and economy within SWTOR would work as intended. This is the main reason the Jawa Junk on the controversial slot machine was good. It allowed people to craft their own items and not rely on spending half their game play making credits to buy those items. I love this game but, I doubt it was the intention of the devs to have people spend so much time on farming credits and less time on playing content. The crafters (small part of overall community) were awarded the nerf for the Slot Machine. Now reward the rest of the community and CAP the GTN.

 

As much as I don't want to see the cost of mats rise back up... I can't agree with you here.

 

Items posted to the GTN either sell, or don't sell at the price posted. If they don't sell, the item price will drop the next time the seller posts it... until it reaches the point that someone believes the cost is in balance with the benefit. You also have the supply and demand issue. If something is in high demand, highly scarce... it will go for a premium because people are willing to spend more to have it. However, if there is a flood of the item, and every seller wants to sell theirs first... they price their wares lower than their competitors in order to win the same.

 

In a way, there is a cap already... the cap is you. If you do not believe that the price asked is worth the value of the item... don't buy the item... As far as mats go... the GTN is a convenience and expedience thing... but certainly not required.

 

There is absolutely nothing stopping you from crafting today... except your own unwillingness to do so. There are many guides out there that can tell you exactly what you need to do to gain skill in , and excel at crafting. Which crew and gathering missions to pair with what crafting skill.

 

Again, as much as I do not want to prices rise up again... I do not think it fair to call either the Resource Collectors or Crafters "gougers". Since each and every player has a means to craft whatever is craftable... you are paying for the convenience of not having to do the learn the skill, re-engineer items to learn schematics (or improve schematics you already know), gather the materials and so on.

 

Don't get me wrong, I was excited about the slots, as it opened up another avenue for acquiring mats.. as a lot of my crafting is done not for sale... it was a god send for me. As much as I liked the drop rate at launch... when they said it had to be looked at, and after I ran a stack of chips through... I knew it did need adjusted... My main gripe (and yes I went off the deep end yesterday wanting a refund) was not that it needed an adjustment (I could see that, as others said it eliminate the need for crew missions entirely and negated the time people took to advance in their crafting skill and companion affection (not entirely cheap by the way)). It absolutely needed an adjustment... but I think that adjustment went too far... One extreme to the other, instead of finding a good balance.

[DreadtechSavant]

LOL, as much as I hate personal greed, I cannot agree with you OP. its there items and as such have every right to sell for whatever they want. That also means by extension that everyone else can refuse to buy at the asking price so it remains unsold or other traders just undercut.

[ivanhedgehog]

You could not be more wrong to be honest.

 

Of course it is the devs intention that you farm credits to be able to purchase goods from the GTN at an inflated price, it is another thing that keeps your legs turning the treadmill.

 

Most things in MMOs are about making you spend more time striving for something, be that credits, armour, titles, you name it. They want you to feel like you have too many things to do and strive for. You keep striving, you keep playing and most importantly, paying.

 

Additionally, your capping idea is ludicrous, people will just stop crafting and you will be left in your greens.

 

they could always set up a vendor and just sell them from that. that would eliminate the problem of scarcity or gouging. people could do dailies to buy them.

[MillionsKNives]

Don't like the price then don't buy it.

 

If you want it anyway then cough up the credits. Or go out and, you know, actually earn the gear.

[VanderII]

Why do people want always limitation? Put a GTN cap, chose my class, put a path to follow, put 1 choise etc.

I suggest to start using our brain....

[azudelphi]

Attempting to gear exclusively through the GTN is the failure here, not the pricing.

[Grayseven]

You know, if it weren't for the comm conversion giving everyone so many Basic Comms, some of these idiots might actually realize that the prices being charged before the Great Slot Debacle weren't any where near excessive.

 

To get a 186 Chest from Basic Comms costs 120 Basic Comms. At 4 Basic Comms per daily, that comes out to having to run 30 Yavin/Rishi dailies just to get one chest piece.

 

30 Dailies is also worth around 290k credits, give or take a few.

 

Crafted mods and enhancements are better than the ones in the Basic Comm gear, optimization wise, for most classes.

 

In other words, you are getting better for less work even if I am charging 60k credits per armoring and mod!

 

So stop being lazy, whining kids and either put forth the effort yourself or pay the prices I and others who have put for the effort decide to charge.

[LyraineAlei]

You know, if it weren't for the comm conversion giving everyone so many Basic Comms, some of these idiots might actually realize that the prices being charged before the Great Slot Debacle weren't any where near excessive.

 

To get a 186 Chest from Basic Comms costs 120 Basic Comms. At 4 Basic Comms per daily, that comes out to having to run 30 Yavin/Rishi dailies just to get one chest piece.

 

30 Dailies is also worth around 290k credits, give or take a few.

 

Crafted mods and enhancements are better than the ones in the Basic Comm gear, optimization wise, for most classes.

 

In other words, you are getting better for less work even if I am charging 60k credits per armoring and mod!

 

So stop being lazy, whining kids and either put forth the effort yourself or pay the prices I and others who have put for the effort decide to charge.

 

Add in Section X, Black Hole, CZ, Oricon, and Makeb and you don't have to do Rishi/Yakin 30 times each. Just to change a bit of the monotony, and SecX has always paid very well in credits when looting and dailying, so even more credits for the work.

[Grayseven]

Add in Section X, Black Hole, CZ, Oricon, and Makeb and you don't have to do Rishi/Yakin 30 times each. Just to change a bit of the monotony, and SecX has always paid very well in credits when looting and dailying, so even more credits for the work.

 

It doesn't matter. You are still putting forth a lot of effort for those basic comms, effort that rewards you with a ton of credits.

 

If putting forth the effort to get basic comms for gear is worthwhile, then putting forth the effort to earn credits to buy the gear is worthwhile.

[Tsillah]

If items that are necessary to be competitive were not so abusively expensive such as a 37 Hilt for over a million credits, the system and economy within SWTOR would work as intended. This is the main reason the Jawa Junk on the controversial slot machine was good. It allowed people to craft their own items and not rely on spending half their game play making credits to buy those items. I love this game but, I doubt it was the intention of the devs to have people spend so much time on farming credits and less time on playing content. The crafters (small part of overall community) were awarded the nerf for the Slot Machine. Now reward the rest of the community and CAP the GTN.

 

I hate grinding for credits and yet I have over 20 million credits on my characters. One million is not that much really if you've been playing at max level for a while.

 

Putting a cap on the GTN is just a bad idea, because people will stop selling those items via the GTN. People will find a way. You can't just block of free trade in an economy like this.

 

The whole point of games like this is that you don't get everything you want in two weeks. People would get bored too quickly. All in all, your suggestion will be detrimental for the game in its entirety.

 

If you do dailies for just 30 mins a day for two weeks you'll have between 1.5 and 2 million credits. If you've ever played Korean based MMOs, the grind in SWTOR is laughable. I think you should try playing a game like Aion or something which was already not too bad in comparison to other Asian based games and see how you like SWTOR then.