Costs of Player Crafting & Materials Prices

ysane

While moving around the various big cities, I've come to realize that the prices that people are charging for low to mid-grade resources are very high. Compared to the amount of resources it takes to actually make an item vs. the cost that the NPC will sell it to you, it seems ridiculous that they are so high.

While I realize that people are not going to want to purchase a one star weapon, it is still a product that is being sold regularly. I am uncertain as to how many people have actually decided to attempt to craft items for sale and determined the cost of doing so.

I will give an example:

The crafting material requirements for a pair of Linked Blades (level 3 sword) is 4 Pig Iron, 8 Grease, and 2 Broken Orange Jade.

The price of the orange jade is the only static price in the bunch, as it can be purchased from the Merchants at 400 coins a piece. The Pig Iron and Grease are up to the basic market price.

I have seen Pig Iron as high as 4000 coins, and Grease as high as 7000 coins. I have also seen them as low as 120 and 60 each (which I promptly bought all of them!).

Taking an average of the prices I've seen on Sanctuary at various times over the last month, it is close to 1250 for each Pig Iron or Grease, if you so choose to purchase them.

As this is what drives the market, I will use it as the basis for my arguments.

A pair of one star Linked Blades costs 3300 coins at the blacksmith. At the prices for the materials above, it will cost 5000+10000+800 or 15,800 coins to make a set. Of course, you could get a two star, and you'd be happy. But if you do not, then you are out a lot of money.

You can sell them to a player, but they're not going to pay 15,800 coins for something they can buy from the blacksmith for 3300. You could sell it to the blacksmith for 1560 coins though. Or you could decompose it for some chi stones (whose cost is an entirely different matter altogether!)

Even at double the NPC paying price of 120 and 60 for the Pig Iron and Grease, you're going to be making those blades for 1760 each. Less than what the NPC sells them for, so they're sellable to the player base. I am not suggesting that the prices be set at anything, I am merely wanting folks to take a look at some of the aspects of crafting so perhaps there will finally be some cohesion to the materials market.

I look forward to the comments on this topic.

necro999

If you think its too expensive then don't buy it. Duh. If nobody buys then the price will go down. If the price does not go down, then someone is obviously buying. As long as someone people are buying, then that becomes the standard market value. I see many stands selling different level materials at varying prices, so it not like a few can corner or dominate the market and set price. Plus you can acquire the materials you need yourself if you must. Plus you can set your price in stand to buy item.

I see these post all the time gripping about player shop prices. To me you all sound too lazy to shop around or go grind and acquire the item and just want them given to you.

Yzane - Sanctuary

I understand your position, I was merely stating that the costs to make the items are not in line with what would seem a fair market price for those things made.

Sindygoboom - Sanctuary

So you already pointed out that crafting your blade gives a chance for bonuses. Even if it turns out to be 1*, it may still come with +1 str or any number of other benefits that your purchased merchant blade will never have. You may get "very happy" or "be out a lot of money" but that's the price you pay for crafting.

To adress your other point about the player market, consider the following: Kitty store selling gems at 2k a pop RIGHT in front of the merchant that sells THE SAME STONE for a fraction of that. No one *should* buy that 1* blade that is the equivilant to a merchant blade, but that doesn't mean someone won't. And the seller just made a killing. Now, if it has even one bonus, then it is not a merchant equivilant and the price can't be tied to that.

In the end, the cost of a crafted weapon will always be higher (if you purchase the raw mats) because not only is there the chance for something nice, many people want their craft level improved so that down the road they can make the bigger, badder weapons. It's an investment you don't make when you just buy the thing.

So yeah...farm the mats...

Evoked - Sanctuary

I'm on the same server too and I guess the prices are too high. That's why I tried to sell some too, no-one bought it but that doens't matter. Well back on topic. Most low-medium materials are high price because most new players think they're worth much. I don't see any reason to buy them at low level because IF I would take all mats I've seen when I trained (inclusive herbs) I already would have enough for almost blacksmith 3 at level 20.

I don't know if high levels need that low level mats too because I use herbs the most.

So my final conclusion is: At low levels theirs no reason for buying any materials. I was Blacksmith/Apo level 2 at level 16 and if I gotten all mats I would be Tailor level 3 too. Guess you only can get level 3 at level 30 it would be a huge waste to train it on low levels to 3 and wasting all ur money on it.

Metraze - Sanctuary

The fact is, crafting at low levels is really only usefull for experience, not profit ... and the cost is only one factor.

Personally, I wouldn't pay 15K for even a 3* lvl 3 weapon of my choice. Why? Because it'll be obsolete after maybe an hour of play, when I can use lvl 4 weapons ... early levels, you just go with quest rewards, half-decent drops, your own crafted items, or store-bought ...

Blacksmith is almost worse than the rest in that aspect - because at level 19, everyone can get a nice 3* weapon just by getting some high-level players to help with their FB19 ...

Low-level crafting is just for your own use and to get experience. And one reason crafting mats are so expensive is because of the need to get that experience ...

I expect (not there yet), crafting will become profitable at higher levels - especially at level 4 crafting skill (I think that would be level 7/8 equipment), since you have to complete a quest to get that - so wouldn't be so much competition for your goods.

Yzane - Sanctuary

With a little more searching around, and everyone's fine posts, I've come to the conclusion that after a while, it won't even really matter. By the time that I achieve a level where it becomes difficult to gain the materials that can only be farmed (thread, grease, etc...) it won't really matter to me what the cost of the materials are because I really won't be using them much. I'll always be able to harvest the point&click versions.

Chabi - Heavens Tear

Theres a reason for midlevel materials having high prices. If you looked out of your area of need maybe you would understand.
Its all a question of demand and whats available. I'll give you a hint "Ultimate substances" and wines. This two products are sucking up more then ppl harvest.
If you think prices are to high dont buy it or buy in cashshop low level material are available there to.

Landostander - Lost City

Actually aside from the unpredictability in prices, I find it amusing when one shopped player is selling some mat like iron for 4k and then two steps down the road in Archosaur is someone selling for 2k.

One other thing that I'm not sure those still concerned with low level crafting items is that when you hit level 40, your equipment still requires low grade materials, just twice as much in most cases. I have the Tailor skill so I'll give a tailoring example.

The armor set for lvl 20 - 30 (the golden _____ of the rose) set. required

1 hard rim muslin (which itself requires 2 silk threads 2 purified oils and 2 coal)
1 broken orange jade (if I recall off the top of my head correctly)
1 high carbon steel

Once I hit lvl 40 and prepare to shed my Purgatorian armor set for the next one it's going to require something like
2 Hard Rim Muslin
1 Yellow Jade
3 High Carbon steel

Of this the Steel and Coal (for the Muslin) are not really difficult to come by, there's plenty to be found if you know where to look. However the last mobs to drop Silk thread are lvl 37 ghouls in Secret Passage and lvl 37 Bloody Goldwings I believe are the highest that drop purified oil.

As I understand things once you greatly surpass the mob your farming the drop rate suffers. So what was once a 17% drop rate has dwindled significantly. Yet you're needing twice the number of materials to produce one hopefully acceptable piece of armor. So a player in the mid 30's doing a quest to get 35 Backstabbing Scorpians or 20 Tiger Striped spiders will probably find themselves with a decent stock of purified oil that a someone in the high 30s or low 40s would be unlikely to obtain. So you've got a very motivated base of people who want that purified oil (and lots of it) especially since they need it to level up their crafting skill once again when they hit lvl 50.